tertiary

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The older major subdivision (period) of the Cenozoic Era, extending from the Cretaceous (top of the Mesozoic Era) to the beginning of the Quaternary (younger Cenozoic Period). The term Tertiary corresponds to all the rocks and fossils formed during this period. Typical sedimentary rocks include widespread limestones, sandstones, mudstones, marls, and conglomerates deposited in both marine and terrestrial environments; igneous rocks include extrusive and intrusive volcanics as well as rocks formed deep in the Earth's crust (plutonic). See also Cretaceous; Fossil; Rock.

The Tertiary Period is characterized by a rapid expansion and diversification of marine and terrestrial life. In the marine realm, a major radiation of oceanic microplankton occurred following the terminal Cretaceous extinction events. This had its counterpart on land in the rapid diversification of multituberculates, marsupials, and insectivores—holdovers from the Mesozoic—and primates, rodents, and carnivores, among others, in the ecologic space vacated by the demise of the dinosaurs and other terrestrial forms. Shrubs and grasses and other flowering plants diversified in the middle Tertiary, as did marine mammals such as cetaceans (whales), which returned to the sea in the Eocene Epoch. The pinnipeds (walruses, sea lions, and seals) are derived from land carnivores, or fissipeds, and originated in the Neogene temperate waters of the North Atlantic and North Pacific. Indeed, the great diversification on land and in the sea of birds and, particularly, mammals has led to the informal designation of the Tertiary as the Age of Mammals in textbooks on historical geology.

The modern configuration of continents and oceans developed during the Cenozoic Era as a result of the continuing process known as plate tectonics. Mountain-building events (orogenies) and uplifts of large segments of the Earth's crust (epeirogenies) alternated with fluctuating transgressions and regressions of the seas over land. The middle to late Tertiary Alpine-Himalayan orogeny and the late Tertiary Cascadian orogeny led to the east-west and north-south mountain ranges, respectively, which are located in Eurasia and western North America. See also Cordilleran belt; Mountain systems; Orogeny; Plate tectonics.

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1. 
   (a) prefix: tert- (abbr.: t-); describing an alkyl compound (e.g. an alkanol) in which the functional group (e.g. a hydroxyl group) is attached to a carbon atom linked to three others.
   
   (b) describing the carbon atom bearing the functional group in such a compound.
   
2. describing an amide or an amine in which three appropriate groups are attached to a nitrogen atom.
3. describing a salt formed by replacing all three of the ionizable hydrogen atoms of a tribasic acid by one, two, or three other cations of appropriate valency. Compare primary, secondary.

• Individuals and Titles - tertiary: lay member of religious order, usu. living in its community

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - tertiær, tredje, højere; om uddannelse
n. - tertiærtiden, et medlem af den tredje grad af en munkeorden

Nederlands (Dutch)
tertiair (in de derde plaats komend), universitair en hoger beroeps(onderwijs)

Français (French)
adj. - tertiaire, supérieur (éducation), au troisième degré (brûlure), au stade tertiaire
n. - tertiaire

Deutsch (German)
adj. - tertiär, Tertiär-
n. - Tertiär (erste Formation der Erdneuzeit), Tertianer

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - τριτογενής, τριτοβάθμιος, τριτεύων
n. - (γεωλ.) τριτογενής διάπλαση

Italiano (Italian)
terziario

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - terciário

Русский (Russian)
(мед.) третичный сифилис, (геолог.) третичная система, университетское, производный цвет с примесью серого, (рел.) принадлежащий к третьему ордену монашеского братства

Español (Spanish)
adj. - terciario
n. - terciario, tercero, el Terciario

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - i tredje hand, tertiär, tredje gradens
n. - tertiär (geol.)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
第三的, 第三世纪的, 第三位的, 第三重音, 第三纪, 第三会员

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 第三的, 第三世紀的, 第三位的
n. - 第三重音, 第三紀, 第三會員

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 제3의, 제3기의, 제3강세의
n. - 제3기, 제3기 매독, 부사적 수식어

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 第三の, 第三紀の
n. - 第三色, 第三紀

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) ألرتبه ألثالثه أو ألدرجه ألثالثه, ثالث (الاسم) ألعصر ألذي تكونت فيه سلاسل ألجبال ألكبرى كالألب والهملايا, العصر الثلثي‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮בדרגה שלישית, שלישי, שלישוני‬
n. - ‮העידן השלישוני (גיאולוגיה)‬

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