Ketiga

Ketiga is an Indonesian word that means "the third." It functions as an ordinal determiner indicating the third item in a sequence and is used across various constructions to denote order or position.

It is formed from the ke- prefix attached to tiga (three) to form the ordinal. In Indonesian, ordinals continue with pertama, kedua, ketiga, keempat, kelima, and so on. Ketiga can modify a noun directly or follow the noun, depending on the phrase: for example, bagian ketiga laporan ini, or pihak ketiga. It can also be used in phrases like yang ketiga to refer to the third one in a list, and in ketiga kalinya to mean the third time.

Usage notes: Indonesian ordinals indicate sequence among three or more items; ketiga denotes position in order rather than a simple count of three. It is common in formal writing, journalism, and everyday speech. In compound expressions, ketiga often appears after the noun it modifies, as in bagian ketiga or pihak ketiga, while in phrases listing items it can appear as yang ketiga or ketiga kalinya to specify a particular instance.

See also: pertama and kedua, keempat, kelima; konsep ordinal dalam bahasa Indonesia.