millón
“millón” means “million (1,000,000)” in Spanish. It has 2 different meanings depending on context:
million (1,000,000)
📝 In Action
Barcelona tiene más de un millón de habitantes.
A2Barcelona has more than a million inhabitants.
Me gustaría ganar un millón de euros en la lotería.
A2I would like to win a million euros in the lottery.
Se han vendido tres millones de copias del libro.
B1Three million copies of the book have been sold.
loads, a ton (of)
Also: zillion
📝 In Action
Gracias, me has ahorrado un millón de problemas.
B1Thanks, you've saved me a ton of trouble (a million problems).
Te lo dije un millón de veces, pero no escuchaste.
B1I told you a million times, but you didn't listen.
Ella tiene millones de ideas para el proyecto.
B2She has loads of ideas (millions of ideas) for the project.
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: millón
Question 1 of 2
Which sentence correctly uses 'millón' when talking about money?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family▼
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼
The word 'millón' is derived from the Italian word 'millione,' which was created by taking the Latin word for 'thousand' (*mille*) and adding the suffix *-one* (which means 'big'). So, a 'millón' literally means 'a big thousand.'
First recorded: Medieval period (13th-14th century in Romance languages)
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to use 'un' (one) before 'millón'?
Yes. Unlike 'mil' (thousand), 'millón' acts like a regular noun and must be preceded by 'un' (or 'dos', 'tres', etc.) when referring to the quantity. Always say 'un millón de personas', not just 'millón de personas'.
Why does 'millón' need 'de' afterward, but 'mil' (thousand) doesn't?
'Millón' (and 'billón', 'trillón', etc.) are treated as nouns in Spanish (the word 'million'). Nouns that describe an amount or container always need 'de' to connect to the things they contain: 'un millón de manzanas' (a million *of* apples). 'Mil' is treated more like a counting adjective, so it attaches directly: 'mil manzanas'.