DictionaryAI

million

numeral
MIL-yuhn/ˈmɪljən/

2 meanings of million

Practice

  1. 1
    exact numbernumeral
    The cardinal number 1,000,000, equal to one thousand times one thousand, or ten to the sixth power.

    The lottery jackpot reached fifty million dollars before anyone claimed it.

    Astronomers estimate the cluster contains hundreds of millions of stars.

    UsageAfter a number, no -s: five million people (not incorrect: five millions). Use millions of without a number.

  2. 2
    very manynumeralcolloquial
    A very large but unspecified number, used loosely to suggest a great many.

    Like 'a thousand and one': a stand-in for more than anyone would bother to count.

    There are a million reasons not to quit your job right now.

    He must have tried a million times before the trick finally worked.

    Note

    Hyperbole with a long pedigree: Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine the Great, written around 1587–1588, already boasts of 'millions infinite of men.' Today the exaggerating use lives in casual speech, as in a million times or millions of reasons, and no listener takes it as the exact count.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • Christopher Marlowe wrote Tamburlaine the Great. gutenberg.org
    • The play was written around 1587–1588. en.wikipedia.org
    • The quotation should be dated to 1590 when using first publication rather than composition. emed.folger.edu
    • The play contains the exact words 'millions infinite of men' in a boast. gutenberg.org

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of million apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

This word came through Old French from Italian "milione," formed from "mille" ("thousand," from Latin "mille") plus the suffix "-one."

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts