Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

third wheel

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.44 in modern English

Syllables
third wheel
IPA
20
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
1
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A person or thing that serves no useful purpose.

noun

A third party, usually unwanted, accompanying two people on a date.

noun

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see third, wheel.

verb

Alternative form of third-wheel.

Inflected Forms

third wheels (plural) 3rd wheel (alternative) third wheels (present, singular) third wheeling (participle, present) third wheeled (participle, past) third wheeled (past)

Phrases

two's company, three's a crowd

Frequently Paired Words

two's company, three's a crowd

Synonyms

fifth wheel gooseberry

Questions

What does third wheel mean?
A person or thing that serves no useful purpose.

How to pronounce third wheel

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “third wheel”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “third wheel”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “third wheel” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.