| 三足金乌 | sān zú jīn wū | three-legged Golden Crow that lives in the sun (in northeast Asian and Chinese mythology); Korean: samjog'o |
| 三跪九叩 | sān guì jiǔ kòu | to kneel three times and kowtow nine times (formal etiquette on meeting the emperor) |
| 三轮车夫 | sān lún chē fū | pedicab driver |
| 三农 | sān nóng | see 三农问题 |
| 三农问题 | sān nóng wèn tí | the three rural issues: agriculture, rural areas and peasants |
| 三迭纪 | sān dié jì | Triassic (geological period 250-205m years ago); also written 三叠纪 |
| 三连胜 | sān lián shèng | hat-trick (sports) |
| 三边形 | sān biān xíng | triangle |
| 三都水族自治县 | Sān dōu shuǐ zú zì zhì xiàn | Sandou Shuizu autonomous county in Guizhou |
| 三都水族自治县 | Sān dū shuǐ zú zì zhì xiàn | Sandu Shuizu autonomous county in Qiannan Buyei and Miao autonomous prefecture 黔南州, Guizhou |
| 三都县 | Sān dū xiàn | Sandu Shuizu autonomous county in Qiannan Buyei and Miao autonomous prefecture 黔南州, Guizhou |
| 三酸甘油酯 | sān suān gān yóu zhǐ | triglyceride |
| 三里屯 | Sān lǐ tún | Sanlitun (Beijing street name) |
| 三里河 | Sān lǐ hé | Sanlihe (Beijing street name) |
| 三重 | sān chóng | treble; Sanch'ung or Sanchong city in Taipei county 台北县, Taiwan; Mie Prefecture in central Japan |
| 三重奏 | sān chóng zòu | trio (musical ensemble) |
| 三重市 | Sān chóng shì | Sanch'ung or Sanchong city in Taipei county 台北县, Taiwan |
| 三重县 | Sān chóng xiàn | Mi'e prefecture in central Japan |
| 三键 | sān jiàn | triple bond (chemistry); triple link |
| 三长两短 | sān cháng liǎng duǎn | unexpected misfortune; unexpected accident; sudden death |
| 三门峡市 | Sān mén xiá shì | Sanmenxia prefecture level city in Henan |
| 三门县 | Sān mén xiàn | Sanmen county in Taizhou 台州, Zhejiang |
| 三阿姨 | sān ā yí | auntie, third eldest of sisters in mother's family |
| 三陪小姐 | sān péi xiǎo jie | female escort; bar girl |
| 三只手 | sān zhī shǒu | pickpocket |
| 三音 | sān yīn | third (musical interval, e.g. do-mi) |
| 三音度 | sān yīn dù | third (musical interval) |
| 三项 | sān xiàng | three items; three events; three terms; tri-; trinomial, ternary (math.); triathlon (abbr. for 三项全能) |
| 三项全能 | sān xiàng quán néng | triathlon |
| 三头六臂 | sān tóu liù bì | lit. to have three heads and six arms; to be extremely talented (idiom) |
| 三头肌 | sān tóu jī | triceps muscle; triceps brachii |
| 三顾茅庐 | sān gù máo lú | lit. three humble visits to a thatched cottage; cf famous episode in the fictional Romance of Three Kingdoms 三国演义 in which Liu Bei 刘备 recruits Zhuge Liang 诸葛亮 (the Hidden Dragon 卧龙) to his cause by visiting him three times |
| 三马同槽 | sān mǎ tóng cáo | three horses at the same trough (idiom, alluding to Sima Yi 司马懿 and his two sons); conspirators under the same roof |
| 三驾马车 | sān jià mǎ chē | troika |
| 三体问题 | sān tǐ wèn tí | three-body problem (mechanics) |
| 三魂 | sān hún | three immortal souls in Daoism, representing spirit and intellect; contrasted with 三魂 七魄 seven mortal forms |
| 三魂七魄 | sān hún qī pò | three immortal souls and seven mortal forms in Daoism, contrasting the spiritual and carnal side of man |
| 三鲜 | sān xiān | three fresh ingredients (in cooking) |
| 三鹿 | sān lù | Three Deer (brand) |
| 三鹿集团 | Sān lù jí tuán | Sanlu or Three deer, major PRC dairy company involved in 2008 melamine poisoning scandal |
| 三点水 | sān diǎn shuǐ | name of "water" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 85); see also 氵 |
