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
Kelly has called for the total cost of tax cuts not to exceed roughly $425 million a year, a limit her aides say includes all tax changes passed by the Legislature, not just this bill.—Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 29 May 2024 Saudi Arabia carried out the second highest number of executions, killing at least 172 people this year, which is approximately 15% of the total number of executions tallied by Amnesty in 2023.—Anna Gordon, TIME, 29 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for total
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'total.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin totalis, from Latin totus whole, entire
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