third space meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

third space

noun

Etymology The first sense was coined by Indian critical theorist Homi K. Bhabha in the context of his hybridity theory.

A state or situation in which cultural distinctions do not apply, allowing one to transcend cultural assumptions.

Third space cannot be produced by the simple transmutation of an excess corporate profit into a charitable "gift": tainted money remains suspect unless it is transformed by a self-consious philanthropic effort.2000, Jon Van Til, Growing Civil Society: From Nonprofit Sector to Third Space, →ISBN:
While some have begun to define the concept of third space, the ever-changing nature of third space theory is a constant roadblock for scholars in this area.2008, Living in Multiple Worlds, →ISBN, page 30:

2 more examples

It is the lived condition of crossing borders and existing in the realm of both/and together that allows for the conscious movement into the creative terrain of third space.2012, Adela C. Licona, Zines in Third Space: Radical Cooperation and Borderlands Rhetoric, →ISBN, page 11:
However, this presupposes that hybrid third spaces are not conceptualized purely as spaces of mixing two or more influences on a level playing field; there are differences in conceptual power in intercultural contacts.2014, Arnd Witte, Blending Spaces, →ISBN:

A place that is neither home nor work, providing a venue for social interaction in a way that those places do not provide.

For youth of Korea – where most still live at home before getting married – these third spaces operate as spaces to connect with other like-minded people.2008, Larissa Hjorth, Mobile Media in the Asia-Pacific, page 258:
WeightWatchers meetings were a third space, those increasingly rare places that are not work and are not home.2025 May 15, Jennifer Weiner, “WeightWatchers Got One Thing Very Right”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 15 May 2025:

An extracellular and extravascular space where abnormal fluid buildup can occur when fluid balance goes wrong.

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