trillion

American  

[tril-yuhn] / ˈtrɪl yən /

noun

plural

trillions,

plural

trillion

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.

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adjective

1. amounting to one trillion in number.

trillion British  

/ 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

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determiner

1. 1. amounting to a trillion

      a trillion stars

   2. ( as pronoun )

      there are three trillion

Other Word Forms

• trillionth noun

Etymology

Origin of trillion

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

Compare meaning

How does trillion compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• billion vs. trillion

Example Sentences

The Wall Street firms behind private credit—roughly $1.3 trillion in the U.S., and more than $2 trillion worldwide—are under new pressure.

From The Wall Street Journal

However, there will also be a boost to the economy from Germany’s planned fiscal stimulus, which promises to invest more than $1 trillion in defense and infrastructure projects.

From The Wall Street Journal

An alarming nugget buried in the Treasury Department’s annual report External link on the federal government’s books from the last fiscal year: Its long-term liabilities exceed its expected revenue by tens of trillions of dollars.

From Barron's

What’s more, the tone in the roughly $30 trillion Treasury market suggests investors suddenly have become more focused on growth concerns than fears of inflation from higher oil prices.

From MarketWatch

The difference in price targets between the two is worth about $1.8 trillion in market value, based on 4.5 billion fully diluted shares outstanding.

From Barron's