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.
a particular aggregate or total, especially with reference to money.
The expenses came to an enormous sum.
an indefinite amount or quantity, especially of money.
to lend small sums.
a series of numbers or quantities to be added up.
an arithmetical problem to be solved, or such a problem worked out and having the various steps shown.
the full amount, or the whole.
the substance or gist of a matter, comprehensively or broadly viewed or expressed.
the sum of his opinions.
concise or brief form.
in sum.
Mathematics.
the limit of the sequence of partial sums of a given infinite series.
a summary.
to combine into an aggregate or total (often followed byup ).
to ascertain the sum of, as by addition.
to bring into or contain in a small compass (often followed byup ).
the result of the addition of numbers, quantities, objects, etc
the cardinality of the union of disjoint sets whose cardinalities are the given numbers
one or more columns or rows of numbers to be added, subtracted, multiplied, or divided
maths the limit of a series of sums of the first n terms of a converging infinite series as n tends to infinity
(plural) another name for number work
a quantity, esp of money
he borrows enormous sums
the essence or gist of a matter (esp in the phrases in sum, in sum and substance )
a less common word for summary
archaic the summit or maximum
(modifier) complete or final (esp in the phrase sum total )
(often foll by up) to add or form a total of (something)
(tr) to calculate the sum of (the terms in a sequence)
See number.
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
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.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The proposed sum is staggering to people familiar with the State Department’s allocation practices and would dwarf the organization’s budget.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Carlos Salmon, a certified financial planner and partner at Wooster Square Advisors, recalled a client in her 80s who inherited a large sum of money that changed her financial situation “overnight.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Her $10 on Bryce and Trinity was less about earning a large lump sum and more about getting heavily invested in the show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
The deal is structured to give the service flexibility and allow it to spend far less than the maximum sum if it grows dissatisfied with the drones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Even though the individual terms go to zero, the sum goes off to infinity.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
“We have this strong connection with SUM because we share these objectives, not only on organizing men’s matches but how they see our business, our sport business in the U.S. for the following years.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2022
SUM profits when Mexico’s national team is promoted in the US.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 19, 2018
SUM puts on an average of five exhibition games involving Mexico each year.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 17, 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
This principle, and so characterised manifests itself in the SUM or I AM; which I shall hereafter indiscriminately express by the words spirit, self, and self-consciousness.
From Biographia Literaria by Coleridge, Samuel Taylor
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
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
“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
Once, diplomatic counterparts who controlled huge sums were regarded warily by U.S. diplomats.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
Victims of Communism has received a handful of government grants in the past, but for much smaller sums.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Other countries, including Qatar, have spent large sums over the years on influence efforts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
The vast sums being forked out to pay for the tickets alone and criticism of Fifa's dynamic pricing strategy, which raises prices when demand is high, have been well-documented.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
I’d seen it when he leaned over to correct my sums or, should I say, to show me just how many I’d done wrong.
From "Worth" by A. LaFaye
One employee summed up the mood with a meme from "The Office," posted on an internal company forum, reading: "0 days since our last nonsense."
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
A headline in the Boston Globe, external summed up the mood: "Smitten from the start, Boston left brokenhearted as Tartan Army moves on."
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
Tom Brady, who played in nearly that many Super Bowls, summed up the feeling in a tweet as he watched Cristiano Ronaldo score twice on Tuesday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
If “The Other Bennet Sister” has taught us anything, it’s that romance can be summed up in two words: bird calls.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
J. G. Crowther has neatly summed up the real root of the problem, which Oldenburg fanned into flame: ‘Hooke could not understand what tact had to do with science...Newton regarded discoveries as private property’.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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
In summing up his aspirations, Angle mentions the film “Jurassic Park.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
The song was credited with summing up the depressed mood of the country at the time, with riots in several British cities in 1981.
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026
“The ones who aren’t creators or influencers see wearers as cringe,” Cohen said, sardonically summing up the general feeling of nonwearers as “Your life is not that cool, bro.”
From Slate ● Feb. 12, 2026
“The medical students will hit pay dirt with Old Man Lichtenberger,” I said, summing up.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
