mil
mil — noun
1. a word meaning one thousand, used especially when talking about amounts of money
a word meaning one thousand, used especially when talking about amounts of money, statistical figures, or large quantities in business settings
The used sedan cost 7 mil dollars, a fair price given its age and condition.
mil + dollars for pricing goods
Nearly 2 mil residents of the mountain village rely on spring water for drinking.
mil + residents for small-population figures
The charity raised 6 mil dollars for disaster relief after the earthquake in Haiti.
The factory produces 3 mil bottles of water each month for local shops.
文法句型
mil + noun (countable)
a mil
用法筆記
Commonly used in journalism, finance, and government reports as a concise way to write or say 'thousand'. Always pluralised as 'mil' (unchanged) — '5 mil' not '5 mils'.
常見錯誤
2. a tiny unit of money that was used in Cyprus before the country switched to the
a tiny unit of money that was used in Cyprus before the country switched to the euro, with one thousand of them making up one Cypriot pound
Chidi found an old coin from the 1980s worth five mils in his grandfather's collection.
historical currency use: five mils
Before 2008, postage stamps in Cyprus often cost just a few mils.
At a Nicosia market in 2005, a bag of fresh oranges cost about 60 mils.
A loaf of bread in Cyprus cost about 350 mils before the country joined the euro.
- Cypriot mil
full name to avoid confusion with other senses
文法句型
the mil
a mil
用法筆記
This sense is historical — Cyprus adopted the euro in 2008. The mil was the smallest unit of the Cypriot pound and not commonly used in everyday transactions even before the change.
3. a measurement of how thick a thin material is, used mainly in engineering and ma
a measurement of how thick a thin material is, used mainly in engineering and manufacturing, with one mil being 0.001 inches in length
The contractor ordered a 6-mil polyethylene sheet to cover the garden during the renovation work.
X-mil used as modifier: 6-mil polyethylene sheet
Kabir saw on the label that the paint layer was just 2 mils thick, too thin for outdoor furniture.
X mils thick — measuring thickness after application
The contractor ordered 20-mil polyethylene sheeting to line the garden pond in the backyard.
The auto body shop applied a 3-mil coat of primer before painting the damaged car door.
- thou
British term for the same unit, also meaning one thousandth of an inch
文法句型
X mils thick
X-mil [material]
用法筆記
Frequently used as an adjective before a material (e.g., '3-mil plastic bag'). 1 mil = 0.001 inch ≈ 0.0254 mm. Do not confuse with millimetres — a 6-mil sheet is much thinner than a 6-mm sheet.
常見錯誤
4. a unit for measuring angles in military and surveying contexts, where a full cir
a unit for measuring angles in military and surveying contexts, where a full circle is split into 6400 equal parts and each part is called one mil
The officer ordered the gun 50 mils to the left to hit the target behind the hill.
military command using mils for turning angle
Through his mil-dot scope, Emre estimated the ridge at 120 mils across.
mil-dot scope for estimation in the field
The surveyor rotated the theodolite by 15 mils to realign with the benchmark across the valley.
Through the mil-dot scope, Sergeant Choi estimated the truck was about 700 metres away.
- NATO mil
specifically the 6400-per-circle standard used by NATO forces
- angular mil
full technical name
文法句型
X mils
adjust by X mils
用法筆記
The NATO mil (6400 per circle) differs from the Soviet mil (6000 per circle) and the true trigonometric mil (6283 per circle). In civilian contexts like rifle scopes, 'mil-dot' reticles are common for range estimation.
5. an informal short form for one million dollars, used in casual business conversa
an informal short form for one million dollars, used in casual business conversation, entertainment news, and finance blogs
The founder made 20 mil when a larger firm bought the startup last spring.
slang: make X mil in business deals
Sofie read the actor's contract was worth 5 mil, a studio record.
The painting sold for 12 mil at the New York auction house last night.
Dario estimated the hotel project would cost around 8 mil to build.
文法句型
X mil
make X mil
用法筆記
Used mainly in speech and informal writing. In formal documents, always write out 'million dollars'. Mil is invariable — '5 mil' not '5 mils'.
常見錯誤
6. a short form of 'military', used as a suffix in internet addresses that belong t
a short form of 'military', used as a suffix in internet addresses that belong to a country's armed forces or defence organisations
The official website for the US Navy ends with .mil rather than .com or .gov.
dot-mil as a top-level domain
Seeing the .mil email address, Tyler knew it came from a military source.
The Republic of Korea maintains a .mil site for public announcements about national defence.
Commander Nakamura sent the flight schedule from his .mil account to all squadron members.
- military
the full form, used in writing when the domain suffix is not relevant
文法句型
.mil
用法筆記
Unlike most abbreviation senses, .mil is not spoken as 'm-i-l' but as 'dot mil' when reading a web address aloud. It is one of the original top-level domains (along with .com, .org, .net, and .gov) established in 1985.