three R's

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plural noun

reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic, regarded as the fundamentals of education.

the fundamentals, basic knowledge, or skills of any system or field: the three R's of good government.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of three R's

First recorded in 1820–30

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use three R's in a sentence

Their three-day scientific outing was paid for by Epstein and was big success.
Sleazy Billionaire’s Double Life Featured Beach Parties With Stephen Hawking|M.L. Nestel|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Three on-the-record stories from a family: a mother and her daughters who came from Phoenix.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
One of the other cops fired three times and those who were still able to give chase did.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
So I was looking back at the years, and that really popped out at me, those three years.
Patton Oswalt on Fighting Conservatives With Satire|William O’Connor|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Of the three nominated, Webster did the best, receiving 12 votes, Gohmert and Yoho received three and two votes, respectively.
Democrats Accidentally Save Boehner From Republican Coup|Ben Jacobs, Jackie Kucinich|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It is thinner than that of chronic bronchitis, and upon standing separates into three layers of pus, mucus, and frothy serum.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
I waited three months more, in great impatience, then sent him back to the same post, to see if there might be a reply.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman
There are three things a wise man will not trust: the wind, the sunshine of an April day, and woman's plighted faith.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
In cross-section the burrows varied from round (three inches in diameter) to oval (three inches high and four inches wide).
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula|Erwin E. Klaas
It separates into three layers upon standing—a brown deposit, a clear fluid, and a frothy layer.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for three R's

three Rs

pl n

the three Rs the three skills regarded as the fundamentals of education; reading, writing, and arithmetic

Word Origin for three Rs

from the humorous spelling reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with three R's

three R's

The fundamentals of education, as in It's a terrible school; the children are not even taught the three R's. It is widely believed that Sir William Curtis, an alderman who became Lord Mayor of London, once presented a toast to the three R's—reading, riting, and rithmetic—thereby betraying his illiteracy. In any event, the term was picked up by others and so used from the early 1800s on.