‘dì sān cì’ literally breaks down as ‘dì’ (ordinal marker, meaning ‘the’ or ‘-th’), ‘sān’ (the numeral ‘three’), and ‘cì’ (a measure word for occurrences or instances). Together, it means ‘the third time’—referring to the third occurrence of an event, action, or experience. It functions as a noun phrase and often appears after subjects and before verbs, especially in past-tense narratives or habitual contexts.

This expression is neutral in register and widely used in both spoken and written Chinese. Unlike English, where ‘third time’ can sometimes stand alone, ‘dì sān cì’ usually needs a verb or context to clarify what is happening for the third time (e.g., ‘wǒ qù Běijīng dì sān cì’ — ‘I’m going to Beijing for the third time’). It commonly pairs with aspect particles like ‘le’ or ‘guò’ to indicate completion or experience.