Advertisement

View synonyms for

total

[ toht-l ]

adjective

  1. constituting or comprising the whole; entire; whole:

    the total expenditure.

    Synonyms:

  2. of or relating to the whole of something:

    the total effect of a play.

  3. complete in extent or degree; absolute; unqualified; utter:

    a total failure.

  4. involving all aspects, elements, participants, resources, etc.; unqualified; all-out:

    total war.



noun

  1. the total amount; sum; aggregate:

    a total of $200.

    Synonyms: ,

  2. the whole; an entirety:

    the impressive total of Mozart's achievement.

    Synonyms: ,

verb (used with object)

totaled, totaling or (especially British) totalled, totalling.
  1. to bring to a total; add up.
  2. to reach a total of; amount to.
  3. Slang. to wreck or demolish completely:

    He totaled his new car in the accident.

verb (used without object)

totaled, totaling or (especially British) totalled, totalling.
  1. to amount (often followed by to ).

total

/ ˈəʊə /

noun

  1. the whole, esp regarded as the complete sum of a number of parts
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. complete; absolute

    a total eclipse

    the evening was a total failure

  2. prenominal being or related to a total

    the total number of passengers

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. whenintr, sometimes foll by to to amount

    to total six pounds

  2. tr to add up

    to total a list of prices

  3. slang.
    tr to kill or badly injure (someone)
  4. tr to damage (a vehicle) beyond repair
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Discover More

Derived Forms

  • ˈٴdzٲ, adverb
Discover More

Other Word Forms

  • ܲȴ-ٴt adjective
  • ܲȴ-ٴt·ly adverb
  • ·ٴt verb (used with object) retotaled retotaling or (especially British) retotalled retotalling noun
  • p·ٴt noun
  • ܲ·ٴt adjective
  • ܲ·ٴt adjective
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of total1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (adjective), from Medieval Latin ō , equivalent to Latin ō(ܲ) “entire” + - -al 1
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of total1

C14: from Old French, from Medieval Latin ō, from Latin ōٳܲ all
Discover More

Synonym Study

See whole.
Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The department has paid out at least 10 settlements dating to 2018 totaling more than $2 million, according to public records analyzed by The Times.

From

He more than doubled his base salary of $184,034 with overtime payouts that year, earning a total of more than $424,500 from the city in pay and benefits, payroll data show.

From

Doge, an advisory body, publishes a running total of its estimated savings on its website - it was $160bn the last time the site was updated on 20 April.

From

In that same period, PSG had a remarkable passing accuracy of 86.5% in Arsenal's half, and the total ratio was 165 passes to 60.

From

Hush was found guilty of nine charges, Cox two, Sharoudi seven and Brown a total of six.

From

Advertisement

Discover More

More About Total

does total mean?

Total describes the wholeness or entirety of something, like the total amount of cake you ate last night. If you ate the total cake, you ate the entire cake (and might have felt sick afterward!).

Total describes the breadth of something either physically or conceptually. For example, your total order describes all the items in your purchase. While if you’re a total success, you are completely successful.

A total is the complete amount or sum. The total on your restaurant bill is the entire amount of money you owe for your meal.

A total can also be the entirety of something. The total of your book collection would be all the books you own, and the total of your sports equipment is all the equipment you own.

Finally, to total is to add up (to total your bill) or to reach an amount, as in The bill totalled up to $56.75.

Example: The total on the bill is higher than I expected because I forgot about sales tax.

Where does total come from?

The first records of the term total come from the 1300s. It comes from the Medieval Latin ō.

Total also has a slang sense, meaning to completely destroy, as in I totaled my car or The building was totaled. When something is totaled, it is completely destroyed or broken down beyond usability. For a total understanding of total, read on!

Did you know … ?

are some other forms related to total?

  • quasi-total (adjective)
  • retotal (verb)
  • totally (adverb)
  • untotalled (adjective)

are some synonyms for total?

are some words that share a root or word element with total?

are some words that often get used in discussing total?

How is total used in real life?

Total is used in a wide variety of contexts, including as an adjective when discussing the scope of something, a noun when discussing a dollar amount, and a verb when discussing the destruction of something.

Try using total!

Which of the following is NOT a synonym for total?

A. all
B. whole
C. part
D. complete

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


tottotal allergy syndrome