How do you pronounce sextillion?

The recorded pronunciation is /sɛksˈtɪljən/.

sextillion

/sɛksˈtɪljən/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.10 in modern English

Syllables: sex-til-lion
IPA: /sɛksˈtɪljən/

Scrabble Score

Letters

Syllables

Unique Chars

Meaning

num

A trillion billion: 1 followed by 21 zeros, 10²¹.

Australian usage; British usage; American usage

num

A million quintillion: 1 followed by 36 zeros, 10³⁶.

Australian usage; British usage; Dated

Example Sentences

"[W]e take now to name them by Millions of Millions of Millions, it is hard to go beyond eighteen, or at moſt four and twenty decimal Progreſſions, without confuſion. But to ſhew how much diſtinct Names conduce to our well reckoning, or having uſeful Ideas of Numbers, let us ſet all these following Figures in one continued Line, as the Marks of one Number: v. g. Nonilions. 857324. Octilions. 162486. Septilions. 345896. Sextilions. 437916. Quintilions. 423147. Quatrilions. 248106. Trilions. 235421. Bilions. 261734. Milions. 368149. Vnites. 623137."

Etymology

From Classical Latin sextus (“sixth”) + -illion; originally the sixth power of a million, 10³⁶. Compare slightly earlier quintillion, Middle French sixlion (1484) and French sextillion (1765). First attested in 1689 in John Locke’s An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (see the quotation).

Word Breakdown

Suffix: la-cla:sextus

Usage

Australian usage
British usage
American usage
Dated

Inflected Forms

sextillions (plural)

Derived Forms

sextillionaire sextillionfold sextillionth

Phrases

Previous: quintillion. Next: septillion. zetta-

Frequently Paired Words

Previous: quintillion. Next: septillion. zetta- thousand million milliard thousand million billion trillion

Synonyms

1021 1036

Rhymes With

million billion brazilian trillion pavilion gillian jillian maximilian vermilion zillion gazillion castilian