tredjedel

Tredjedel is a noun used in Scandinavian languages to denote one third of a whole. It designates a fraction equal to 1/3 and is used in mathematics, statistics, cooking, and everyday speech.

The term is formed from elements meaning three and part, a common pattern in Germanic languages. It has close cognates in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish, all with the same basic meaning of one third or a third portion.

In practical use, a tredjedel represents 0.333... of a total. For example, dividing a cake into three equal portions yields three tredjedeler, each representing one tredjedel of the cake. In analysis or voting contexts, one tredjedel can describe one third of the votes or responses.

Sessions of interest or formal texts may employ the term to describe proportional shares of quantities, populations, or time. While the word is standard in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish, its English equivalent is simply “one third” or “a third.”

See also: fractions, one third, third.