total

1 of 4

adjective

to·​tal ˈtō-tᵊl 

1

: comprising or constituting a whole : entire

the total amount

2

: absolute, utter

a total failure

a total stranger

3

: involving a complete and unified effort especially to achieve a desired effect

total war

total theater

total

2 of 4

noun

1

: a product of addition : sum

2

: an entire quantity : amount

total

3 of 4

verb

totaled or totalled; totaling or totalling

transitive verb

1

: to add up : compute

2

: to amount to : number

3

: to make a total wreck of : demolish

specifically : to damage so badly that the cost of repairs exceeds the market value of the vehicle

totaled the car

total

4 of 4

adverb

: totally

Synonyms

Adjective

• absolute
• sheer
• complete
• utter
• unconditional
• pure
• definite
• simple
• outright

Noun

• sum
• totality
• full
• whole
• aggregate

Verb

• number
• average
• aggregate

Choose the Right Synonym for total

whole, entire, total, all mean including everything or everyone without exception.

whole implies that nothing has been omitted, ignored, abated, or taken away.

read the whole book

entire may suggest a state of completeness or perfection to which nothing can be added.

the entire population was wiped out

total implies that everything has been counted, weighed, measured, or considered.

the total number of people present

all may equal whole, entire, or total.

all proceeds go to charity

Examples of total in a Sentence

Adjective

a total lack of support

a total eclipse of the sun

He demanded total control of the project.

What was the total amount of the bill?

the total number of words

The country has a total population of about 100 million.

Noun

a total of 25 square miles

that's the total for our wheat harvest this year

Verb

He carefully totaled the bill.

two and two total four

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Overall, there are 838 total general officers and admirals on active duty -- 446 of them are from the higher two-star, three-star and four-star ranks -- according to the Pentagon's latest statistics from June. —Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 30 Sep. 2025

The commission tabled the item to provide more time for Experience Fayetteville staff to evaluate the worth of the property, the house's annual expenses, a reasonable market-rate rent range and the total cost of repairs to the property paid for by Experience Fayetteville. —Arkansas Online, 30 Sep. 2025

Noun

Surrounded by turquoise Caribbean waters along a sandy white beach, a total of six individual resorts (including one that's adults-only) make up the Barceló Maya Grand Resort for a total of more than 3,500 rooms and suites. —Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 27 Sep. 2025

Tropical Depression Nine is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 8 to 12 inches, with isolated maximum totals of 16 inches in eastern Cuba, and 4 to 8 inches of rain in the Bahamas. —Miami Herald Hurricane Bot, Miami Herald, 27 Sep. 2025

Verb

Starlink satellites to SpaceX's megaconstellation, which now totals more than 8,500 active units. —Robert Z. Pearlman, Space.com, 29 Sep. 2025

Lester Smith, who had been working at Abbey Road since 1970, was the keeper of Abbey Road’s microphone collection, which then totaled eight hundred–plus — all of them kept in good repair and still used to this day. —Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2025

Adverb

Collecting three weeks total atop the Billboard 200, Eternal Sunshine got a second life earlier this year with a deluxe edition released a few months after the November premiere of Wicked. —Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2025

Hot 100 and 45 weeks total on the chart. —Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 25 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin totalis, from Latin totus whole, entire

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1557, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1716, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

1601, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing total

• come as a (complete/total) surprise
• grand total
• sum total
• the sum total
• total depravity
• total eclipse
• total recall

Rhymes for total

• motile
• anecdotal
• hypocotyl
• sacerdotal
• subtotal

Kids Definition

total

1 of 3 adjective

to·​tal ˈtōt-ᵊl 

1

: of or relating to the whole of something

a total eclipse of the sun

2

: making up the whole

the total amount

3

: being such to the fullest degree

total ruin

4

: making use of every means to do something

total war

total

2 of 3 noun

1

: a product of addition : sum

2

: an entire amount

total

3 of 3 verb

totaled or totalled; totaling or totalling

1

: add sense 3

2

: to amount to

donations totaled $120

3

: to make a total wreck of

totaled the car