third

adjective

\ ˈthərd

Definition of third

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : being next after the second in place or time the third taxi in line

b : ranking next after the second of a grade or degree in authority or precedence served as third mate

c : being the forward speed or gear next higher than second especially in a motor vehicle

2a : being one of three equal parts into which something is divisible a third share of the money

b : being the last in each group of three in a series take out every third card

third

noun

Definition of third (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : one that is number three in a series — see Table of Numbers

b : one that is next after second in rank, position, authority, or precedence the third in line

2 : one of three equal parts of something a third of the pie

3 : third base

4 : the third forward gear or speed especially of a motor vehicle

5a : the musical interval embracing three diatonic degrees

b : a tone at this interval specifically : mediant

c : the harmonic combination of two tones a third apart

6 thirds plural : merchandise whose quality falls below the manufacturer's standard for seconds

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Examples of third in a Sentence

Adjective

We sat in the third row. the third house on the left C is the third letter in the alphabet. That's the third time I've seen him today. The office is on the third floor. Do you have a third choice? a third share in the profits a third pound of cheese

Noun

The win was his third of the year. a third of the pie Rent costs two-thirds of my paycheck. She divided the cookie into thirds.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

With the table set, Xander Bogaerts stroked a ground ball to right for a single that scored Betts, pushed Devers to third, and trimmed the deficit to 6-2. — Julian Benbow, BostonGlobe.com, "In a pinch, Marco Hernandez delivers win for Red Sox," 4 July 2019 David Peralta then shot a double off Donovan Solano’s glove into short left-field, sending Marte to third. — Henry Schulman, SFChronicle.com, "Giants sputter again, making Alex Young’s big-league debut a happy occasion for Diamondbacks," 27 June 2019 After factoring in European skaters and European and North American forwards, Foote is projected to be a second- or third-round pick. — Mike Chambers, The Denver Post, "Avalanche legend Adam Foote’s second son, Nolan, might be another NHL first-round draft pick," 11 June 2019 Should the Hawks lose, a second game in the finals would follow at 4 p.m. Wesleyan lacrosse honors: Harry Stanton, Christian Barker and Carter Hawthorne were selected to the USILA Division III All-America third team. — Staff Reports, courant.com, "Hartford Advances To America East Championship," 25 May 2018 Until then, Binford and other volunteers are the only third-party allowed to enter the facilities to talk to children, the Flores counsel’s clients, and report the conditions back to the counsel. — oregonlive.com, "An Oregon lawyer visited border patrol facilities in the El Paso sector; here’s what she knows and what it means.," 29 June 2019 The controversial play happened in the previous at-bat, when Franklin third baseman Ryan Rathke fielded a bunt and threw to first for the out. — Mark Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Jim Hughes led Franklin to the state baseball tournament 10 times. We look back at each one of them," 28 June 2019 Astros third baseman Alex Bregman and outfielders George Springer and Michael Brantley were elected to start the 2019 MLB All-Star Game. — Houston Chronicle Sports, Houston Chronicle, "Astros place three starters in MLB All-Star Game," 28 June 2019 MINNEAPOLIS — Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers left Wednesday night’s game against the Twins in the top of the fifth inning because of what the team described as right hamstring tightness. — Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, "Rafael Devers leaves Red Sox game because of hamstring tightness," 19 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

That puts them just shy of the hard limit of about one third that solar researchers calculated half a century ago. — Daniel Oberhaus, WIRED, "New Designs Could Boost Solar Cells Beyond Their Limits," 11 July 2019 To get oil from Canada’s oil sands, for example, requires the burning of nearly one third of the country’s natural gas production. — Stephen Leahy, National Geographic, "We have too many fossil-fuel power plants to meet climate goals," 1 July 2019 In April, the advocacy group Veterans Education Success took UMUC to task for spending less than one-third of tuition and fees on academic instruction in 2017. — Danielle Douglas-gabriel, Washington Post, "‘UMUC is not like everybody else’: Tensions flare over school’s direction," 16 June 2019 Heinz said one-third of its Instagram activity -- including mentions and tags -- is related to Sheeran and his love of the ketchup. — Sandra Gonzalez, CNN, "Ed Sheeran thinks this ketchup is perfect," 5 June 2019 Mosby has claimed a conviction rate of 92 percent even while dropping more than one-third of her cases. — Tim Prudente, baltimoresun.com, "Ivan Bates' 'undefeated' claim of prosecuting murders in Baltimore not a clear cut case," 14 June 2018 Spending on park land per capita is currently one third of what the city of Atlanta spends, one fifth of Minneapolis. — Ed Barnhart - Special To The Observer Editorial Board, charlotteobserver, "Embarrassing: Charlotte is at the bottom of another study," 4 June 2018 But the land sits within the county’s strict rural area — roughly one third of the county — established by Seminole voters in a 2004 ballot measure. — Martin E. Comas, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Bridge over Econ River proposed for multi-home development in rural Seminole," 25 Apr. 2018 It's estimated that roughly one third of the population experiments with some form of paraphilia at least once in their lives, with 17 percent regularly engaging in their kinks. — Andrew Paul, GQ, "What Golden Shower Practitioners Think About a Certain Rumored Pee Tape," 24 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'third.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.