ENGLISH
REFERENCE

trillion

num. · n.
US //ˈtɹɪɫjən// UK //tɹˈɪliən// tril·lion
  1. 1 the number 1,000,000,000,000 (num.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Math

    the number 1,000,000,000,000, which is a million million.

    the cardinal number 10 to the power of 12, following the short scale convention now standard in both British and American English.

    Example

    The government spent over a trillion dollars on the new infrastructure project last year.

    Example

    Economists warned that the national debt had surpassed thirty trillion dollars, sparking intense debate over long-term fiscal sustainability.

    Usage

    Used as a cardinal number; it remains singular when preceded by a specific number but takes an 's' in the phrase 'trillions of'.

  2. 2 an incredibly large amount (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Informal

    a word you use when you want to say there is a huge, uncountable number of something.

    a hyperbolic term used to denote an unspecified, extremely large quantity.

    Example

    I have a trillion things to do before we leave for our holiday tomorrow.

    Example

    She felt as though she had a trillion different thoughts racing through her mind as she waited for the interview to begin.

    Teacher's tip

    This is purely hyperbolic; learners should use it only in casual speech to show exaggeration.
  3. 3 basketball slang (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Slang American English Sport

    a joke in basketball for a player who plays for a few minutes but does nothing else on the stat sheet.

    a box score entry where a player records minutes played followed by zeros in all other statistical categories, resembling the digit one followed by twelve zeros.

    Example

    He played for two minutes but finished with a trillion in the box score.

    Example

    The benchwarmer's only contribution to the game was a five-minute trillion, failing to record a single point, rebound, or assist before being subbed out.

Origin

Borrowed from French trillion, from French tri- (“three”) + -illion, equivalent to tri- + -illion. The noun was coined by American basketball player Harvey Pollack, because of the way the numbers read across a basketball box score.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Last updated June 20, 2026