trillion

[ tril-yuhn ]

noun

, plural tril·lions, (as after a numeral) tril·lion.

1. a cardinal number represented in the U.S. by 1 followed by 12 zeros, and in Great Britain by 1 followed by 18 zeros.

adjective

1. amounting to one trillion in number.

trillion

/ ˈtrɪljən /

noun

1. the number represented as one followed by twelve zeros (10 ¹²); a million million
2. (formerly, in Britain) the number represented as one followed by eighteen zeros (10 ¹⁸); a million million million
3. often plural an exceptionally large but unspecified number

determiner

1. preceded bya or a numeral
   1. amounting to a trillion

      a trillion stars

   2. ( as pronoun )

      there are three trillion

Derived Forms

• ˈtrillionth, nounadjective

Other Words From

• trillionth noun adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of trillion¹

1680–90; < French, equivalent to tr ( i )- tri- + ( m ) illion million

Word History and Origins

Origin of trillion¹

C17: from French, on the model of million

Example Sentences

Musk, who has vowed to cut at least $2 trillion in federal spending, could pressure regulators looking into his companies.

From Los Angeles Times

At a late-October rally for Trump in New York, Musk pledged he would find “at least $2 trillion in cuts” from the federal government.

From Los Angeles Times

U.S. government spending stands at about $6.75 trillion annually, with the vast majority of the money going in direct support to Americans.

From Los Angeles Times

More than $5 trillion goes each year to Social Security, Medicare, federal employee retirement, unemployment compensation and the like.

From Los Angeles Times

Yet if all of the $2 trillion in US government expenditure savings now being targeted by Musk were to come from discretionary spending, analysts calculate that entire agencies - from transport, to agriculture, to Homeland Security - would have to be entirely closed down.

From BBC