Word
billion
Phoneticsbil·lion
US/ˈbɪɫjən/
UK/bˈɪliən/
Definition
n. a very large, unspecified number of things.
n. an indefinitely large quantity used for hyperbolic effect.
Examples
“The world population is over eight billion people.”
“The government plans to spend several billion dollars on improving the national rail network over the next decade.”
“While a million seconds is roughly twelve days, a billion seconds lasts for over thirty-one years, illustrating the vast scale difference between these two numerical orders.”
Examples
simple
“The world population is over eight billion people.”
contextual
“The government plans to spend several billion dollars on improving the national rail network over the next decade.”
complex
“While a million seconds is roughly twelve days, a billion seconds lasts for over thirty-one years, illustrating the vast scale difference between these two numerical orders.”
Usage
Usually used in the plural form 'billions of' when referring to a general large quantity.
Etymology
From French billion, equivalent to bi- (“two”) + -illion.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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englishreference.com/q/billion