Definition of tertiary Tertiary

/tɚˈʃɚi/ - [tersheree] - ter•ti•ar•y

We found 14 definitions of tertiary from 6 different sources.

What does tertiary mean?

Noun
tertiary - from 63 million to 2 million years ago
		Tertiary period
		age of mammals, cenozoic, cenozoic era approximately the last 63 million years
		pliocene, pliocene epoch from 13 million to 2 million years ago; growth of mountains; cooling of climate; more and larger mammals
		miocene, miocene epoch from 25 million to 13 million years ago; appearance of grazing mammals
		oligocene, oligocene epoch from 40 million to 25 million years ago; appearance of sabertoothed cats
		eocene, eocene epoch from 58 million to 40 million years ago; presence of modern mammals

= synonym
= antonym
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tertiary (Noun)
A tertiary feather.
tertiary (Noun)
A member of a Roman Catholic third order - the Franciscans, Dominicans and Carmelites among others.
tertiary (Adjective)
Of third rank or order; subsequent.

tertiary (a.)
Being of the third formation, order, or rank; third; as, a tertiary use of a word.
tertiary (a.)
Possessing some quality in the third degree; having been subjected to the substitution of three atoms or radicals; as, a tertiary alcohol, amine, or salt. Cf. Primary, and Secondary.
tertiary (a.)
Later than, or subsequent to, the Secondary.
tertiary (a.)
Growing on the innermost joint of a bird's wing; tertial; -- said of quills.
tertiary (n.)
A member of the Third Order in any monastic system; as, the Franciscan tertiaries; the Dominican tertiaries; the Carmelite tertiaries. See Third Order, under Third.
tertiary (n.)
The Tertiary era, period, or formation.
tertiary (n.)
One of the quill feathers which are borne upon the basal joint of the wing of a bird. See Illust. of Bird.

tertiary
A "C" road in the UK. Generally for use on roads wider than 4 metres (13') in width, and for faster/wider minor roads that aren't A or B roads. In the UK, they tend to have dashed lines down the middle, whereas unclassified roads don't.

tertiary
tėr′shi-ar-i, adj. of the third degree, order, or formation: pertaining to the series of sedimentary rocks or strata lying above the chalk and other secondary strata, and abounding in organic remains—the Cainozoic: (ornith.) tertial.—n. one who, or that which, is tertiary.—n.pl. Ter′tiaries, a class in the R.C. Church, who, without entering into the seclusion of a monastery, aspire to practise in ordinary life all the substantial obligations of the scheme of virtue laid down in the Gospel. [L. tertiarius—tertius.]