billion
noun
Did you know?
How much is a billion? It might depend on whom you ask. Billion was borrowed from French in the late 1600s to indicate the number one million raised to the power of two, or a million million—a number represented by a 1 followed by 12 zeros. However, the French later changed their naming conventions so that a billion became a thousand million (a 1 followed by 9 zeros) and a trillion became a thousand thousand million (or a million million, the old billion). The French have since returned to the older system, but it was this new system that was adopted by American English speakers in the 1800s. In Britain, the newer system has seen increasing use since the 1950s, but the older sense is still sometimes used there as well.
Examples of billion in a Sentence
Colette Davidson, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2025
When the Health and Human Services Administration abruptly cancelled billions in public health grants last month, Jackson County Public Health wasn’t spared.
—Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 9 Apr. 2025
In industrialized countries, hay fever diagnoses are rising by 2% to 3% per year, costing billions of dollars in health care and lost productivity.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 9 Apr. 2025
Improper payments in these programs cost tens of billions of dollars annually.
—Gary D. Alexander, National Review, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for billion
Cite this Entry
“Billion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/billion. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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