DictionaryAI

billion

numeral
BIL-yuhn/ˈbɪljən/

3 meanings of billion

Practice

  1. 1
    thousand millionnumeral
    The number equal to one thousand million, written as 1 followed by nine zeros.

    A thousand groups, each holding a million things inside it.

    The company reported profits of over a billion dollars last year.

    Earth is now home to roughly eight billion people.

    UsageAfter a number, say seven billion, not incorrect: seven billions. Say billions of when you give no number.

    Similarmilliard

    Note
  2. 2
    huge numbernumeralcolloquial
    A huge number, used when you mean a whole lot but not an exact amount.

    Like saying you have a million chores: it just means a whole lot.

    I've told you a billion times to lock the door.

    There were a billion things to finish before the wedding.

    UsageSay a billion or billions of before a noun: a billion times. Use it in talk, not in reports.

    Note
  3. 3
    million millionnumeraldated
    A thousand times a thousand million, written as 1 followed by twelve zeros.

    Take a million things, then count a million groups of them.

    Grandpa went to school in Britain, where a billion once had twelve zeros.

    n = 1,000,000,000,000, that is, = a billion, or the square of a million
    1778, Francis Maseres, “A Method of Finding, by the Help of Sir Isaac Newton's Binomial Theorem, a Near Value of the very Slowly Converging…Here, billion means a million million, or 1 followed by twelve zeros.

    UsageIn old books, a billion may mean a million million, not a thousand million.

    Similartrillion

    Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of billion apart? Answer 4 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From French billion, made from bi- meaning "two".

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 2 facts