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TIERCE

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Tierce
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tierce

  [teers] ,
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–noun
1. an old measure of capacity equivalent to one third of a pipe, or 42 wine gallons.
2. a cask or vessel holding this quantity.
3. Also, terce. Ecclesiastical. the third of the seven canonical hours, or the service for it, originally fixed for the third hour of the day (or 9 a.m.).
4. Fencing. the third of eight defensive positions.
5. Piquet. a sequence of three cards of the same suit, as an ace, king, and queen (tierce major), or a king, queen, and jack (tierce minor).
6. Obsolete. a third or third part.
Origin:
1325–75; ME < MF, fem. of tiers < L tertius third
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Tierce
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tierce   (tîrs)   
n.  

  1. also Tierce (tîrs) or terce or Terce (tûrs) Ecclesiastical

    1. The third of the seven canonical hours. No longer in liturgical use.

    2. The time of day appointed for this service, usually the third hour after sunrise.

  2. A measure of liquid capacity, equal to a third of a pipe, or 42 gallons (159 liters).

  3. Games A sequence of three cards of the same suit.

  4. Sports The third position from which a parry or thrust can be made in fencing.

  5. Music An interval of a third.


[Middle English, from Old French, from feminine of tiers, third, from Latin tertius; see trei- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

tierce 
"old unit of measure equal to one-third of a pipe (42 gallons)," 1531, from O.Fr., from L. tertia, fem. of tertius "a third," from base of tres "three." Also used in Eng. for "a third part" (1491), and "the third hour of the canonical day" (ending at 9 a.m.), c.1375.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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