| 三十六计 | sān shí liù jì | The Thirty-Six Stratagems, a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and in civil interaction; all the possible schemes and stratagems |
三十六计，
走为上策 | sān shí liù jì ,
zǒu wéi shàng cè | Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is best.; see also 三十六计 |
| 三十天 | sān shí tiān | thirty days |
| 三十年来 | sān shí nián lái | for the past thirty years |
| 三十而立 | sān shí ér lì | thirty years old and therefore independent (idiom, from Confucius) |
| 三原则 | sān yuán zé | the Three Principles (in many contexts) |
| 三原县 | Sān yuán xiàn | Sanyuan county in Xiányáng 咸阳, Shǎnxī 陕西 |
| 三叉神经 | sān chā shén jīng | trigeminal nerve |
| 三反 | sān fǎn | "Three Anti" campaign (anti-corruption, anti-waste, anti-bureaucracy), early PRC purge of 1951-52 |
| 三反运动 | sān fǎn yùn dòng | "Three Anti" campaign (anti-corruption, anti-waste, anti-bureaucracy), early PRC purge of 1951-52 |
| 三台县 | Sān tái xiàn | Santai county in Mianyang 绵阳, north Sichuan |
| 三合一 | sān hé yī | three in one; triple |
| 三合一疫苗 | sān hé yī yì miáo | DTP vaccination |
| 三合土 | sān hé tǔ | mortar; concrete; cement |
| 三合星 | sān hé xīng | triple star system |
| 三合会 | Sān hé huì | Triads, organized crime society; Triad Society (early Qing anti-Manchu secret society) |
| 三国史记 | Sān guó shǐ jì | History of Three Kingdoms (Korean: Samguk Sagi), the oldest extant Korean history, compiled under Kim Busik 金富轼 in 1145. The three kingdoms are Goguryeo 高句丽, Baekje 百济, Silla 新罗. |
| 三地门 | Sān dì mén | Santimen township in Pingtung county 屏东县, Taiwan |
| 三地门乡 | Sān dì mén xiāng | Santimen township in Pingtung county 屏东县, Taiwan |
| 三天 | sān tiān | three days |
| 三天两头 | sān tiān liǎng tóu | lit. twice every three days (idiom); practically every day; frequently |
| 三夷教 | sān yí jiào | the three foreign religions (Nestorianism, Manicheanism and Zoroastrianism) |
| 三姑六婆 | sān gū liù pó | women with disreputable or illegal professions (idiom) |
| 三字经 | sān zì jīng | (slang) swearword; four-letter word; Three character classic, a 13th century reading primer consisting of Confucian tenets in lines of 3 characters |
| 三家村 | Sān jiā cūn | lit. village of three households; name of essay column in Beijing newspaper from 1961-1966, written by Deng Tuo 邓拓, Wu Han 吴晗 and Liao Mosha 廖沫沙, criticized as anti-party during the Cultural Revolution |
| 三对三斗牛 | sān duì sān dòu niú | three-on-three basketball game |
| 三尖杉酯碱 | sān jiān shān zhǐ jiǎn | harringtonine (chemistry) |
| 三山 | Sān shān | Sanshan district of Wuhu city 芜湖市, Anhui |
| 三山区 | Sān shān qū | Sanshan district of Wuhu city 芜湖市, Anhui |
| 三岔口 | sān chà kǒu | At The Crossroads, the name of a famous opera, story from Shui Hu Zhuan |
| 三岛由纪夫 | Sān dǎo Yóu jì fū | Mishima Yukio (1925-1970), Japanese author, pen name of (平冈公威, Hiraoka Kimitake) |
| 三峡大坝 | Sān Xiá Dà bà | Three Gorges Dam |
| 三峡库 | Sān xiá kù | Three gorges reservoir on the Changjiang or Yangtze |
| 三峡水库 | sān xiá shuǐ kù | the Three Gorges reservoir; Three gorges reservoir on the Changjiang or Yangtze |
| 三峡镇 | Sān xiá zhèn | Sanhsia town in Taipei county 台北县, Taiwan |
| 三度 | sān dù | third (musical interval) |
| 三厢 | sān xiāng | sedan (automobile body type) |
| 三得利 | Sān dé lì | Suntory, Japanese beverage company |
| 三心二意 | sān xīn èr yì | in two minds about sth (idiom); half-hearted; shilly-shallying |
| 三思而后行 | sān sī ér hòu xíng | think again and again before acting (idiom); consider carefully in advance |
| 三思而行 | sān sī ér xíng | think three times then go (idiom); don't act before you've thought it through carefully |
| 三教 | sān jiào | the Three Religions (Daoism, Confucianism, Buddhism) |
| 三教九流 | sān jiào jiǔ liú | the Three Religions (Daoism, Confucianism, Buddhism) and Nine Schools (Confucians, Daoists, Yin-Yang, Legalists, Logicians, Mohists, Political Strategists, Eclectics, Agriculturists); fig. people from all trades (often derog.) |
| 三文鱼 | sān wén yú | salmon |
| 三旬九食 | sān xún jiǔ shí | in thirty days only nine meals (idiom); family on the brink of starvation; in dire straights |
| 三明 | Sān míng | Sanming prefecture level city in Fujian |
| 三明市 | Sān míng shì | Sanming prefecture level city in Fujian |
| 三明治 | sān míng zhì | sandwich; CL:个 |
| 三星乡 | Sān xīng xiāng | Sanxing or Sanhsing township in Yilan county 宜兰县, Taiwan |
| 三星集团 | Sān xīng Jí tuán | Samsung Group |
