tercio

third

noun TEHR-syoh Less Common

Origin: From Latin tertius (third).

Also means

one third

Usage Note

Tercio as a noun means a one-third portion (un tercio de la población = one third of the population). In bullfighting, the three tercios mark the structured phases of a corrida. Historically, los Tercios were the feared Spanish infantry units of the 16th–17th centuries. As an ordinal adjective, tercer/tercero is used instead of tercio.

Examples

"Solo terminó un tercio del trabajo asignado."

Natural Translation

He only finished one third of the assigned work.

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