third party

American  

noun

• third parties
  plural

1. any party to an incident, case, quarrel, etc., who is incidentally involved.

2. (in a two-party system) a political party formed as a dissenting or independent group from members of one or both of the two prevailing major parties.

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third party British  

noun

1. a person who is involved by chance or only incidentally in a legal proceeding, agreement, or other transaction, esp one against whom a defendant claims indemnity

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adjective

1. insurance providing protection against liability caused by accidental injury or death of other persons or damage to their property

   third-party insurance

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• third parties
  plural

Etymology

Origin of third party

An Americanism dating back to 1795–1805

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

third party

It’s unclear where the money went, but the Wall Street Journal reported that billions were passed through a third party before being received by entities tied to Walter or his TWG Global holding company.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

“Any data we receive will be rigorously scrubbed of any personally identifiable information by a third party before receipt.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

It’s unclear exactly where all the money went, but the Wall Street Journal reported billions were passed through a third party before being received by entities tied to Walter or his TWG Global holding company.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

However, a spokesperson said an established policy – to never confirm to a third party that a guest was staying at one of its hotels – was not followed and "this should not have happened".

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Any third party whom you might make their commander cannot immediately seize enough authority to harm you.

From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli

Related Words

• mediator