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   ter·ti·ar·y

   /ˈtərSHēˌerē/

   adjective

   • 1. third in order or level: "the tertiary stage of the disease"
   • ▪ relating to or denoting education at a level beyond that provided by schools, especially that provided by a college or university. British
   • ▪ relating to or denoting the medical treatment provided at a specialist institution: "patients in tertiary care"
   • 2. relating to or denoting the first period of the Cenozoic era, between the Cretaceous and Quaternary periods, and comprising the Paleogene and Neogene subperiods.
   • 3. (of an organic compound) having its functional group located on a carbon atom which is itself bonded to three other carbon atoms.
   • ▪ (chiefly of amines) derived from ammonia by replacement of three hydrogen atoms by organic groups.
   • 4. denoting or relating to carnivores that eat other carnivores and omnivores: "the tertiary consumers must hunt for their food"

   noun

   • 1. the Tertiary period or the system of rocks deposited during it.
   • 2. a lay associate of certain Christian monastic organizations: "a Franciscan tertiary"

   Word Origin mid 16th century (in tertiary (sense 2 of the noun)): from Latin tertiarius ‘of the third part or rank’, from tertius ‘third’.

   Scrabble Points: 11

   • T

     1

   • E

     1

   • R

     1

   • T

     1

   • I

     1

   • A

     1

   • R

     1

   • Y

     4

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