核心畫面

Picture a table with two sides sitting at it: a buyer and a seller, or two people in a dispute. Anyone else who walks up to that table is the third one there. Third party can be a you invite in, a who gets hit by what you decide, or simply anybody who is not one of the two sides.

可以想成一張桌子,兩邊各坐一個人:買方和賣方,或是吵架的兩造。任何走到這張桌子旁的其他人,就是「第三個」。他可能是被更多收起可以想成一張桌子,兩邊各坐一個人:買方和賣方,或是吵架的兩造。任何走到這張桌子旁的其他人,就是「第三個」。他可能是被請進來幫忙的人,可能是被你們的決定波及的人,也可能只是「不屬於這兩邊」的任何人。third 在這裡不是排名,而是「兩邊以外」的意思;party 也不是派對,而是「一方、當事人」。

Three branches

合約與法律上的第三方

最貼近桌子畫面的一組。法律和合約天生就是兩邊的事,所以「第三方」這個位置在這裡最清楚。

noun · B2

A person, company, or group that is not one of the two main sides in an agreement, a deal, or a court case, but who is affected by it or is brought into it in some way.

第三方

被找進來做事的外部業者

同一張桌子換成買賣:賣家一邊、買家一邊,被拉進來幫忙的公司就是第三個。這一組在購物和科技的文字裡最常見。

noun · B2

A company, shop, service, or app that is not the seller you are buying from and not you the buyer, but that is brought in to do part of the work.

第三方(業者)

兩大黨以外的政黨

把桌子放大成一整個國家的政治。兩大黨各坐一邊,其餘政黨全站在第三個位置上,所以不管有幾個小黨,每一個都叫 a third party。

noun · C1

In a country where two big political parties win nearly all the elections, any other party that tries to win as well.

第三黨