million

American  

[mil-yuhn] / ˈmɪl jən /

noun

• millions,
  plural
• million
  plural

1. a cardinal number, a thousand times one thousand.

2. a symbol for this number, as 1,000,000 or M̅.

3. millions, a number between 1,000,000 and 999,999,999, as in referring to an amount of money.

   His fortune was in the millions of dollars.

4. the amount of a thousand thousand units of money, as dollars, pounds, or euros.

   The three Dutch paintings fetched a million.

5. a very great number of times.

   Thanks a million.

6. the million(s), the mass of the common people; the multitude.

   poetry for the millions.

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adjective

1. amounting to one million in number.

2. amounting to a very great number.

   a million things to do.

million British  

/ ˈmɪljən /

noun

1. the cardinal number that is the product of 1000 multiplied by 1000 See also number

2. a numeral, 1 000 000, 10 ⁶ , M, etc, representing this number

3. informal (often plural) an extremely large but unspecified number, quantity, or amount

   I have millions of things to do

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determiner

1. 1. amounting to a million

      a million light years away

   2. ( as pronoun )

      I can see a million under the microscope

2. informal done for; sunk

million Idioms  

1. see feel like oneself (a million dollars); look like a million dollars; one in a million.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• multimillion
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• million
  plural
• millions
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of million

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English milioun, from Middle French, from Old Italian millione ( Italian milione ), equivalent to mille “thousand” (from Latin mīlle ) + -one, augmentative suffix

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Explanation

A million is 1,000,000. It's a large number made of a thousand thousands. If you have a million dollars, you’re a millionaire! The word million comes from the Italian milione, which literally means "a great thousand.” It’s great to have a thousand, but it’s awesome to have a million! A million is a big number but not so big that you don't see it used frequently. In fact, being a millionaire isn’t even a big deal anymore. An online video might be watched by a million viewers, and there are millions of people in big cities like New York City and Chicago.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

million millions

In September, the total for-sale housing inventory in the U.S. jumped to 1.6 million units, the highest level since November 2019, NAR said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 17, 2026

Some 45 million grandparents contribute an average of 500 hours of child care annually, according to the AARP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026

The firm caused further panic in February when it announced plans to partially cash out investors in the fund it had tried to restructure by selling $600 million of loans it held.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

Two weeks after cutting his first check, Musk gave an additional $83 million to SLF, according to the group’s filing.

From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026

A million little silver strands burst in the serpent’s face, prompting it to recoil and blink its way through the sparkly cloud.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

Kelsey Ducklow, coastal resilience director for the Coastal Commission, said the agency has awarded millions in grants for local planners to study the threat to their communities and come up with plans.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

Tropical rainforests like the Amazon are home to millions of species.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

Repeated across millions of interactions, modest savings could become meaningful.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

He has recruited young politicians with large online followings, including Ana Elisa, a 21-year-old newly elected lawmaker from Minas Gerais state who has millions of followers.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Is it possible that ordinary German people did not know about the systematic murder of millions of people?

From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

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