Drittens

Drittens is a German adverb meaning "thirdly" that is used to introduce the third item in a list or argument. It belongs to a set of ordinal adverbs formed from the corresponding adjective with the suffix -ns, alongside erstens, zweitens, viertens, and so on. The form is standard in formal and semi-formal prose.

In usage, drittens functions as a discourse marker to structure reasoning. It can appear at the beginning of a clause as in "Drittens sollten wir..." or within a sentence after a preceding point, typically in lists or argumentative sequences. It is commonly found in essays, lectures, reports, academic writing, and legal texts, but is generally avoided in casual spoken language in favor of simpler transitions such as "auch," "außerdem," or "zudem."

Etymology and derivation: The word is formed from the ordinal "dritte" with the suffix -ns to yield an adverbial marker. It is part of a conventional tripartite or multipart enumeration system in German, often used with other ordinal adverbs to signal the order of points.

Notes: In many contexts, a colon preceding the items or a comma after the introductory word is used in more formal lists: "Es gibt drei Gründe: Erstens ..., zweitens ..., Drittens ..." See also related terms such as erstens, zweitens, viertens.