Meanings

  1. A third; an interval of 3 (minor third) or 4 (major third) semitones.

    kleine Terzminor third

  2. terce (prayer at the third hour of daylight)

  3. tierce (a stance with the back of the hand facing up and the knuckles outwards)

  4. An attack from such a position.

    Herr Bruder, ich habe die Ehre, dir hier den unvergleichlichen Kavalier Pinassa vorzustellen, den berühmtesten Fechter seiner Zeit; denn es gelang ihm, durch eine unbesiegliche Terz-Quart-Terz, mich, bedenke mich, den Senior des Amizistenordens, in Leipzigs unvergeßlichem Rosenthal hors de combat zu machen.My brother, I have the honor of introducing to you the unmatched Cavalier Pinassa, the most famous fencer of his time; for he succeeded, through an undefeatable tierce-quart-tierce [sequence], at defeating me, mind you, me, the senior of the amicist order, in the unforgettable Rosenthal [park] in Leipzig.

2 more meanings

Noun

  1. colloquial · no pluralstink, fight, trouble (aggressive, quarrelsome behavior; typically as part of protesting or looking for a fight)

    Terz machento raise a stink, to make a scene

  2. colloquial · no pluralfuss (seemingly disproportionate occurence of effort or issues to achieve a goal)

    Wir numerieren die Tage ab sofort einfach durch! Das spart auch Platz, zumindest die nächste Zeit - und wir schenken uns den ganzen Terz mit den ewigen Geburtstagen, Jahrestagen, Weihnachten etc.!!We'll just give every day a running number from now on! It saves space, at least in the short term - and we don't need to bother with all the fuss about birthdays, anniversaries, christmas, etc.!!

Examples

GermanEnglish
Mach nicht so einen Terz!Don't make such a racket!