millions
millions — noun
1. an extremely large but unspecified amount or quantity, usually mentioned to stre
an extremely large but unspecified amount or quantity, usually mentioned to stress how big or how many something is rather than to give an exact count.
Sirin said millions of people watch that cooking show every Sunday night.
millions of + plural countable noun for exaggeration
Tamar has told me millions of times not to leave wet towels on the bed.
informal idiomatic 'millions of times' for emphasis
After the storm, there were millions of broken branches scattered across the park.
Omar joked that he had millions of tiny tasks to finish before Saturday's wedding rehearsal.
My nephew Christopher owns millions of plastic dinosaurs but only ever plays with two of them.
- a handful
small, easily counted number
文法句型
millions of + plural noun
用法筆記
Mostly informal hyperbole. The speaker is not counting — the number is chosen to sound impressively huge. In careful writing, prefer 'many' or 'a great many' when no actual count is implied.
常見錯誤
2. huge amounts of money, usually counted in units of one million of a currency, of
huge amounts of money, usually counted in units of one million of a currency, often when describing wealth, profits, or losses.
Rachid built three coffee chains and is now reportedly worth millions.
be worth + millions to describe personal wealth
The new film about a young pianist has already made millions at the box office.
make + millions for revenue or earnings
Feng warned that the failing bank could cost taxpayers millions in losses.
By selling rare comic books online, Quinn quietly turned a small hobby into millions.
Beatriz inherited millions from her grandmother, but she still drives the same old van.
- pennies
informal; tiny amounts of money
文法句型
make millions
worth millions
millions in + currency
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: here the noun refers specifically to money amounts (millions of dollars / pounds / euros), often left unstated because context is financial. The plural alone is read as currency in business and news contexts.
常見錯誤
3. the numerical range starting at one million and going up to just under a billion
the numerical range starting at one million and going up to just under a billion, used to describe how big a count or figure actually is.
Sari said the city's nightly water use is now in the millions of litres.
in the + millions for stating a count's order of magnitude
Sales of the new phone climbed into the millions within just three days.
into the millions for growth crossing the seven-digit line
Ife told reporters that the repair bill would run well into the millions.
Tickets for the Tokyo film festival are usually counted in the millions every spring.
Yara explained that the new vaccine had already been given to numbers in the millions worldwide.
- seven figures
informal; used mainly for sums and salaries
- in the high six- or seven-digit range
more technical phrasing in reports
- in the hundreds
much smaller magnitude
文法句型
in the millions
into the millions
run into millions
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1 (which is loose exaggeration) and sense 2 (which is specifically money). This sense gives a real magnitude estimate — the count is genuinely between roughly one million and one billion.