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
Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 19 Dec. 2024
The Biden administration has approved billions of dollars in student loan forgiveness and other relief for borrowers who were defrauded by their school or adversely impacted by their school’s closure.
—Adam S. Minsky, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
Congress raced to avert a government shutdown as soon as the weekend with a sprawling stopgap spending bill that includes billions in hurricane aid along with handouts to farmers and a host of other seemingly unrelated priorities.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 18 Dec. 2024
Honda and Nissan each need to invest billions of dollars in electric vehicles, said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights at Edmunds, a market research firm.
—River Akira Davis, New York Times, 18 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Billion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/billion. Accessed 24 Dec. 2024.
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