Origin of total
synonym study for total
OTHER WORDS FROM total
Words nearby total
MORE ABOUT TOTAL
What does total mean?
Total describes the wholeness or entirety of something, like the total amount of cake you ate last night. If you ate the total cake, you ate the entire cake (and might have felt sick afterward!).
Total describes the breadth of something either physically or conceptually. For example, your total order describes all the items in your purchase. While if you’re a total success, you are completely successful.
A total is the complete amount or sum. The total on your restaurant bill is the entire amount of money you owe for your meal.
A total can also be the entirety of something. The total of your book collection would be all the books you own, and the total of your sports equipment is all the equipment you own.
Finally, to total is to add up (to total your bill) or to reach an amount, as in The bill totalled up to $56.75.
Example: The total on the bill is higher than I expected because I forgot about sales tax.
Where does total come from?
The first records of the term total come from the 1300s. It comes from the Medieval Latin tōtālis.
Total also has a slang sense, meaning to completely destroy, as in I totaled my car or The building was totaled. When something is totaled, it is completely destroyed or broken down beyond usability. For a total understanding of total, read on!
Did you know … ?
What are some other forms related to total?
- quasi-total (adjective)
- retotal (verb)
- totally (adverb)
- untotalled (adjective)
What are some synonyms for total?
What are some words that share a root or word element with total?
What are some words that often get used in discussing total?
How is total used in real life?
Total is used in a wide variety of contexts, including as an adjective when discussing the scope of something, a noun when discussing a dollar amount, and a verb when discussing the destruction of something.
I’m in total disbelief right now 💔
— Normani (@Normani) September 7, 2018
When Notre Dame stops paying Charlie Weis after tomorrow, the total bill will come to about $49.5 million. That's for 35 wins.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 31, 2015
Added honey and almond milk. Was a total success. Tasted like Honey Nut Cheerios.
— Glenn Howerton (@GlennHowerton) June 24, 2017
Try using total!
Which of the following is NOT a synonym for total?
A. all
B. whole
C. part
D. complete