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

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

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

The high-concept satire from writer-director Alejandro González Iñárritu, which cost about $125 million to make, sold just $8 million worth of tickets at more than 3,300 domestic theaters its opening weekend.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

ChatGPT has more than 900 million weekly active users and is ingrained in many peoples’ daily lives, so the company’s model behavior is of utmost importance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

At its height, 10 million workers were on the streets before fresh elections led to the revolt fizzling out, but not before carving an indelible memory in French social history.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

It was felt across the country of around 4.5 million people, according to the USGS.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

Well over a million new immigrants came from a single country, Ireland.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Analysts at Citi forecast what’s next as millions brace for their first major hurricane in years.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

On social media, influencers and fitness experts garner millions of views and likes on videos blaming cortisol for an array of concerns from belly fat to hair loss to “moon face.”

From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026

With thousands of fish farms worldwide, aquaculture provides millions of people with year-round access to affordable protein.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

And there is no historical context, no millions of deaths, pressuring them to race forward.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

But what about the millions of children and teenagers who followed Hitler and fought for the Nazis?

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

Related Words

• bank
• lot
• much
• sum
• thousand
• ton
• total
• trillion