Definition of "thirdhand" [thirdhand]

• Acquired from or through two intermediate sources: a thirdhand report. (adjective)
• Previously used by two other owners. (adjective)
• Dealing in merchandise previously used by two other owners. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The heavily redacted text, however, refers to thirdhand information from a source who claimed Monroe's ex-husband, baseball great Joe DiMaggio, offered $25,000 in 1965 for a film that someone else claimed showed Monroe having sex."
• "(Bloomberg) - Tobacco smoke contamination lingering on furniture, clothes and other surfaces, dubbed thirdhand smoke, may react with indoor air chemicals to form potential cancer-causing substances, a study found."
• "And although recent studies have raised the possibility that another source of tobacco exposure known as thirdhand smoke, which involves physical tobacco residue that may remain on the clothing and hair of smokers, could be contributing to the higher cotinine levels among these children, Wilson says that exposure is also unlikely to explain the entire amount recorded in the subjects of her study."