noun
- The plural of decillion; the number represented by 1 followed by 33 zeros in the short scale (U.S. and modern British), or 1 followed by 60 zeros in the long scale (traditional British and European).
Usage: Used primarily in mathematics and scientific contexts; Short scale (U.S.): 10^33; Long scale (traditional): 10^60; Rarely encountered in everyday language
Examples
- A decillion is an astronomically large number used mainly in theoretical mathematics.
- The physicist explained that the number of atoms in the observable universe is far fewer than a decillion.
- In the short scale system, a decillion equals 10 to the 33rd power.
- Decillions are so vast that they have little practical application outside pure mathematics.