- Third estate
- Third Third (th[~e]rd), a. [OE. thirde, AS. [thorn]ridda, fr.
[thorn]r[=i], [thorn]re['o], three; akin to D. derde third,
G. dritte, Icel. [thorn]ri[eth]i, Goth. [thorn]ridja, L.
tertius, Gr. tri`tos, Skr. t[.r]t[=i]ya. See {Three}, and cf.
{Riding} a jurisdiction, {Tierce}.]
1. Next after the second; coming after two others; -- the
ordinal of three; as, the third hour in the day. ``The
third night.'' --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]
2. Constituting or being one of three equal parts into which anything is divided; as, the third part of a day. [1913 Webster]
{Third estate}. (a) In England, the commons, or the commonalty, who are represented in Parliament by the House of Commons. (b) In France, the tiers ['e]tat. See {Tiers ['e]tat}.
{Third order} (R. C. Ch.), an order attached to a monastic order, and comprising men and women devoted to a rule of pious living, called the third rule, by a simple vow if they remain seculars, and by more solemn vows if they become regulars. See {Tertiary}, n., 1.
{Third person} (Gram.), the person spoken of. See {Person}, n., 7.
{Third sound}. (Mus.) See {Third}, n., 3. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.