tertian.
Characterised by paroxysms recurring every other day (that is, every third day by inclusive reckoning).
Meaning & usage
Characterised by paroxysms recurring every other day (that is, every third day by inclusive reckoning).
Pertaining to the mean-tone temperament, in which major thirds are perfectly in tune.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English tertiān, terciān, terciāne (adjective and noun), originally often as part of the collocation fever cum terciane, after Latin febris cum tertiānā. Compare the "third" essence of tertiary. By surface analysis, terti- + -an.
A tertian fever.
A cask of a certain size; its volume used as a measure of capacity (one-third of a tun's).
A Jesuit going through tertianship.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English tertiān, terciān, terciāne (adjective and noun), originally often as part of the collocation fever cum terciane, after Latin febris cum tertiānā. Compare the "third" essence of tertiary. By surface analysis, terti- + -an.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.