Chinese symbol for “third”
三次
sān cì
third; three times; (math.) degree three, cubic (equation)
The closest CC-CEDICT match for third is 三次 (sān cì), defined as: third; three times; (math.) degree three, cubic (equation).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “third”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 三世 | sān shì | the Third (of numbered kings) |
| 三度 | sān dù | third (musical interval) |
| 其三 | qí sān | thirdly; the third |
| 三音 | sān yīn | third (musical interval, e.g. do-mi) |
| 三音度 | sān yīn dù | third (musical interval) |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 三次.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 三星 | sān xīng | three major stars of the Three Stars 参宿 (Shēn xiù) Chinese constellation; the belt of Orion |
| 三级 (三級) | sān jí | grade 3; third class |
| 十三 | shí sān | thirteen; 13 |
| 三分 | sān fēn | somewhat; to some degree |
| 第三方 | dì sān fāng | third party |
| 一次 | yī cì | first; first time |
| 第一次 | dì yī cì | the first time; for the first time |
| 再次 | zài cì | once more; once again |
See also: Japanese symbol for “third”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.