trillion

Everyday

1. A trillion is a million millions: 1,000,000,000,000, or 10 to the power of 12 — a 1 followed by 12 zeros. tree →
2. (informal) «Trillions» means an enormous, uncountable number: «I've told you trillions of times!» tree →

In the lessons

In maths lessons place value grows: thousand (3 zeros), million (6), billion (9), trillion (12). Trillions come up in science and money: the human body has about 30 trillion cells; there are hundreds of billions to trillions of trees on Earth; whole countries' economies are measured in trillions of dollars or pounds. Phrases: «a trillion dollars», «trillions of stars», «one in a trillion».

Examples

• A trillion is a thousand billion. tree →
• The human body is made of trillions of cells. tree →
• Write one trillion in digits: 1,000,000,000,000. tree →
• Counting to a trillion, one number a second, would take over 30,000 years. tree →
• Some countries' economies are worth trillions of dollars. tree →
• There are trillions of tiny bacteria in your gut. tree →
• I've asked you a trillion times to tidy your room! (informal) tree →

Note

After a number, «trillion» has no s: «three trillion», but «trillions of». Today in English a trillion = 10^12 (a million million). Trap: long ago in Britain «billion» meant a million million and «trillion» a million million million; old books may use these. In some other languages (like French «billion») the word means 10^12, so check translations. Maths: 1 trillion = 1,000 billion = 1,000,000 million.

In Jewish tradition

In maths lessons place value grows: thousand (3 zeros), million (6), billion (9), trillion (12). Trillions come up in science and money: the human body has about 30 trillion cells; there are hundreds of billions to trillions of trees on Earth; whole countries' economies are measured in trillions of dollars or pounds. Phrases: «a trillion dollars», «trillions of stars», «one in a trillion».

Note

After a number, «trillion» has no s: «three trillion», but «trillions of». Today in English a trillion = 10^12 (a million million). Trap: long ago in Britain «billion» meant a million million and «trillion» a million million million; old books may use these. In some other languages (like French «billion») the word means 10^12, so check translations. Maths: 1 trillion = 1,000 billion = 1,000,000 million.