billón
“billón” means “trillion” in Spanish (1,000,000,000,000 (one million million)).
trillion
Also: million million
📝 In Action
La deuda externa del país alcanzó un billón de dólares.
B2The country's foreign debt reached one trillion dollars.
Hay aproximadamente un billón de estrellas en esa galaxia.
B2There are approximately one trillion stars in that galaxy.
Un billón es un número difícil de imaginar.
A2A trillion is a difficult number to imagine.
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✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: billón
Question 1 of 3
If someone says 'un billón' in Spanish, how many millions is that?
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👥 Word Family▼
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼
Created by combining 'bi-' (meaning two) and 'millón'. It literally represents a 'million to the power of two'.
First recorded: 15th century
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is 'billón' the same as the US 'billion'?
No. The US 'billion' is 1,000,000,000. The Spanish 'billón' is 1,000,000,000,000. It is 1,000 times larger!
Why is it so confusing?
It's because of two different systems: the 'Short Scale' (used in the US/UK) and the 'Long Scale' (used in Spain and Latin America). Spanish stays true to the logic that a 'bi-llion' is a million squared.
What comes after 'billón' in Spanish?
After 'billón' comes 'mil billones' (quadrillion in English), then 'trillón' (quintillion in English).