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• sum
  sum

  noun

  the aggregate of two or more numbers, magnitudes, quantities, or particulars as determined by or as if by the mathematical process of addition.
• SUM
  SUM

  surface-to-underwater missile.
• sum-
  sum-

  variant of sub- before m: summon.

sum

¹ American  

[suhm] / sʌm /

noun

• sums
  plural

1. the aggregate of two or more numbers, magnitudes, quantities, or particulars as determined by or as if by the mathematical process of addition.

   The sum of 6 and 8 is 14.

2. a particular aggregate or total, especially with reference to money.

   The expenses came to an enormous sum.

3. an indefinite amount or quantity, especially of money.

   to lend small sums.

4. a series of numbers or quantities to be added up.

5. an arithmetical problem to be solved, or such a problem worked out and having the various steps shown.

6. the full amount, or the whole.

7. the substance or gist of a matter, comprehensively or broadly viewed or expressed.

   the sum of his opinions.

8. concise or brief form.

   in sum.

9. Mathematics.

   1. the limit of the sequence of partial sums of a given infinite series.

   2. union.

10. a summary.

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verb (used with object)

• sums,
  present (3rd person singular)
• summed,
  past participle,  past
• summing
  present participle

1. to combine into an aggregate or total (often followed byup ).

2. to ascertain the sum of, as by addition.

3. to bring into or contain in a small compass (often followed byup ).

verb (used without object)

• sums,
  present (3rd person singular)
• summed,
  past participle,  past
• summing
  present participle

1. to amount (usually followed by to orinto ).

   Their expenses summed into the thousands.

verb phrase

1. sum up

   1. to reckon.

      We summed up our assets and liabilities.

   2. to bring into or contain in a brief and comprehensive statement; summarize.

      to sum up the case for the prosecution.

   3. to form a quick estimate of.

      I summed him up in a minute.

SUM ² American  

1. surface-to-underwater missile.

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sum- ³ American  

1. variant of sub- before m: summon.

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sum ¹ British  

/ sʌm /

noun

1. 1. the result of the addition of numbers, quantities, objects, etc

   2. the cardinality of the union of disjoint sets whose cardinalities are the given numbers

2. one or more columns or rows of numbers to be added, subtracted, multiplied, or divided

3. maths the limit of a series of sums of the first n terms of a converging infinite series as n tends to infinity

4. (plural) another name for number work

5. a quantity, esp of money

   he borrows enormous sums

6. the essence or gist of a matter (esp in the phrases in sum, in sum and substance )

7. a less common word for summary

8. archaic the summit or maximum

9. (modifier) complete or final (esp in the phrase sum total )

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verb

1. (often foll by up) to add or form a total of (something)

2. (tr) to calculate the sum of (the terms in a sequence)

sum ² British  

/ sʊm /

noun

1. the standard monetary unit of Uzbekistan, divided into 100 tiyin

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sum Scientific  

/ sŭm /

1. The result of adding numbers or quantities. The sum of 6 and 9, for example, is 15, and the sum of 4 x and 5 x is 9 x.

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Synonym Usage

See number.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sumlessness
  noun
• outsum
  verb (used with object)
• sumless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sums
  plural

Participles

• summing
  present
• summed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sum
  simple
• sums
  simple
• have summed
  perfect
• has summed
  perfect
• am summing
  progressive
• are summing
  progressive
• is summing
  progressive
• have been summing
  perfect progressive
• has been summing
  perfect progressive

Past

• summed
  simple
• had summed
  perfect
• was summing
  progressive
• were summing
  progressive
• had been summing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sum
  simple
• will have summed
  perfect
• will be summing
  progressive
• will have been summing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sum

First recorded in 1250–1300; (noun) Middle English summe, from Latin summa “sum,” noun use of feminine of summus “highest,” superlative of superus ( see superior); (verb) Middle English summen (from Old French summer ), from Medieval Latin summāre, derivative of summa

Explanation

When you determine the sum, you add up all the numbers. When you sum something up, you focus on all of its important points. The word sum can also refer to a certain amount of money. A new car might cost you a huge sum of money. But if you sum or add up all its benefits, you might be able to justify spending so much. You calculate the total on a restaurant bill when you sum up the prices of everything you ordered. Sum doesn't have to refer strictly to numbers. When you sum something up, you're giving an overview or general statement about it.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sum SUM sum- sums summed summing

Le Maire suddenly had a 40 billion-euro hole to plug, a sum that he argued exceeded the government’s power to make cuts without the National Assembly’s approval.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

The absence of European football means that sum dropped to £302m in 2025-26.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Conversely, a child who handles money well and wants the flexibility to invest, start a business or buy a home is the better candidate for a lump sum.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

UC said in its filing that the federal demand covers more than 2,000 research projects, totaling a sum that far exceeds the $1.2-billion fine sought by the administration in August 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Just as Achilles’ sub-races are each finite, each partial sum in a limit is finite.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

The inclusion of the women’s squad under the SUM umbrella is new and underscores interest by the federation in the team.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2022

SUM puts on an average of five exhibition games involving Mexico each year.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 17, 2016

“Where is the money, where is it going and what does it look like – SUM included? Let’s find out.”

From The Guardian ● Apr. 11, 2016

The organizers capitalized SUM at the exorbitant amount of $500,000 and named the nation’s first planned industrial city in honor of New Jersey governor William Paterson.

From Time ● Dec. 28, 2015

An armed man with a sword in his hand, inscribed, “CONSTANTIA SUM, NIL TIMENS.”

From The Stones of Venice, Volume II (of 3), by John Ruskin

He was embarrassed at having sum- moned a senior representative of the U.S. government all this way.

From MSNBC ● Nov. 7, 2017

The company is worth at least $72 a share, based on a sum- of-the-parts analysis by Bernstein’s Dibadj.

From BusinessWeek ● Sep. 21, 2011

“Is it true that on sundry occasions during the sum- mer you have entered her house and visited with her?”

From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

By sum- mer he’d learned the basics of the uranium bomb.

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

He did not have the careless, almost British look of most of the Devon Masters, because he was a substitute for the sum- mer.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

But White emphasized that for companies handling billions in revenue, "the sums are kind of irrelevant."

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

Lecornu has said the draft law, first presented before the protests, would allow these sums to be "taken from family allowances and housing benefits, while ensuring a minimum income is preserved".

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

Mr. Dimon should pledge significant personal and corporate sums to help instruct and encourage these ideals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

A total of £830.69 million represented tagged sums - the amount paid by the club's owners.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

Celebrities had been known to pay huge sums of money to buy an avatar name they wanted from a cyber-squatter who had already reserved it.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Confidence has clearly taken a hit and Wednesday's bizarre error from defender Leah Williamson summed up the chaotic nature of their season so far.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

Alex said the moment had summed up his daughter's unstoppable nature perfectly.

From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026

His favorite trick can be summed up in the language of an infant’s board book: See Mike run.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

The show, called “Yard Sale Liberation,” may best be summed up by this passage in the notes: “This is not a fantasy. These are pieces for the world.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Samuel Stearns summed up their feelings in a bit of awkward verse: “This mortal Plague at thy command / And thou thereby hast humbled sinful man!”

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

He even published his autobiography, but instead of summing up his career, it restarted it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Major said, summing up the sentiment he heard from clients.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Mike Murphy continues his wonderful series of What’s Worth Streaming, reviewing the offerings from eight streaming services and summing up which ones are worth paying for and which ones you should skip for the month.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

"So far, wait and see," one EU diplomat said, on condition of anonymity, summing up the attitude toward Magyar.

From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026

“Pretty thing,” Mom said, summing up the general reaction of the backyard crowd.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• amount
• bulk
• quantity
• value
• worth