0 (of information, etc.) not received directly but having been passed on by several different people, one after the other:
The intelligence service relied too heavily on information that came through second- and third-hand accounts.
Clothes are the market's biggest business, particularly second- or even third-hand overcoats to fight off the European winter.
1 in a way that involves at least two other people passing on information, one after the other:
Much of the testimony for the prosecution was based on second and third-hand accounts of statements supposedly made by the accused.
She went on to make a casework decision based on second-hand or third-hand information she received. What a scary prospect.
The profit allowed Sal to buy herself a second-hand dress, Kitty a pair of shoes and Charlie a third-hand suit.
We are trying to get a few more miles out of our third-hand pickup truck.
One report came through CNN.com, admittedly third-hand and anonymous.
After hearing about the case third-hand, one of the institution's veterinary pathologists requested that herpes B virus infection be ruled out.
They don't tell us anything. Occasionally, though, we do hear something third-hand.
If you're buying second- or third-hand, you're not reliant on atmosphere-polluting factories.
