Definitions

third world

NOUN

underdeveloped countries

Synonyms

WEAK

developing countries developing nations economically developing countries economically developing nations emergent nations underdeveloped nations

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Ehrlich urged wealthy nations to cut off food assistance to the Third World.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

"I'm not going to start the Third World War for you," he is reported to have told General Wesley Clark.

From BBC • Oct. 15, 2024

International financiers showed up once to monitor the budgeting, demanding proof that Sacramento could repay borrowed money, as if it were a Third World country.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2023

Rodriquez broadly charts it in three big word-and-image pieces generically titled “BX Third World Liberation Mixtape.”

From New York Times • Apr. 5, 2023

Brandon’s father, referenced in the play but never seen, is off somewhere in the Third World, volunteering for Doctors Without Borders.

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove