We extend the third perturbation theory to study the polarization control behavior of the intermediate state absorption in Nd3+ ions.The results show that coherent interference can occur between the single-photon and three-photon excitation pathways,and depends on the central frequency of the femtosecond laser field.Moreover,single-photon and three-photon absorptions have different polarization control etficiencies,and the relative weight of three-photon absorption in the whole excitation processes can increase with increasing the laser intensity.Therefore,the enhancement or suppression of the intermediate state absorption can be realized and manipulated by properly designing the intensity and central frequency of the polarization modulated femtosecond laser field.This research can not only enrich theoretical research methods for the up-conversion luminescence manipulation of rare-earth ions,but also can provide a clear physical picture for understanding and controlling multi-photon absorption in a multiple energy level system.