Skip to main content
third party

third party

56 4.8
A political group that opposes the two main parties
  • noun
  • /θɜrd ˈpɑrti/
translation icon : partido minoritario
  • In the upcoming election, many voters are considering supporting a third party to challenge the dominance of the major candidates.

Examples

  • The introduction of a third party could reshape the political landscape by offering new ideas and policies.

  • Johnson is, like most third-party candidates in the past, just a blip in the polls.

    Blog text (4)
  • Note that it is not necessary for the third party to obtain the same result as the original study:

    Academic text (2006)
  • Additional comments on the role of third parties in ensuring compliance will be provided later in the paper.

    Academic text (1993)
  • There's never been a successful third party political culture take hold in this country without one really big issue to drive it.

  • And So what is in the making is a very definitive possibility of a third party candidate or a third candidate, third option.

  • But then you would say, "Voting for a third-party candidate is throwing away your vote."

    Blog text (2)
  • I believe Paul when he says that he will not consider any third-party run for the WH.

    Blog text (4)
  • Although Australian politics is dominated by the Liberal (conservative) and Labor parties, a third party traditionally has represented rural interests.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Historically, a strong third party has emerged in times of public discontent with the existing political system.

How Large

party
3.2
third party
56 4.8

Surface Forms

third party singular
third parties plural

Morphology

third + party

The meaning 'a person or group besides the two primarily involved' is directly and compositionally derived from 'third' (an additional/ordinal) plus 'party' (a participant or side in a matter). This adjectival+noun combination follows a common and cross-linguistic pattern in legal/transactional contexts, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent meanings can infer the MWE.

Etymology

Third party comes from counting in politics: when two big 'parties' are in charge, a smaller third party is the next group that stands apart from them. So it means a political group outside the two main parties.