terawatt

noun

tera·​watt ˈter-ə-ˌwät How to pronounce terawatt (audio)
: a unit of power equal to one trillion watts

Examples of terawatt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The findings are relevant as data centers currently consume hundreds of terawatt-hours of electricity each year, with demand growing alongside the expansion of AI and cloud computing. Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Sep. 2025 When scaled to today’s GPT-4 and GPT-5, training costs soar into billions of liters and terawatt-hours, reshaping local utilities and global emissions. Dianne Plummer, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025 That translates to a solar potential of over 10 terawatts. IEEE Spectrum, 15 Aug. 2025 According to Energy Star, the global annual energy consumption across the market is 68 terawatt hours. Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for terawatt

Word History

Etymology

tera- + watt

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of terawatt was in 1970

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Terawatt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terawatt. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

terawatt

noun
tera·​watt ˈter-ə-ˌwät How to pronounce terawatt (audio)
: a unit of power equal to one trillion watts
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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