gazillion
part of speech
noun (a gazillion, gazillions); adjective-like number word (a gazillion stars) — informal
meaning for a pupil
1) (informal, hyperbole) A gazillion is a made-up, huge number used to say «very, very many»; it is not a real number. tree →
2) Gazillions means an enormous amount, more than anyone could count. tree →
sense in the lessons
In lessons on hyperbole it is a typical exaggeration: «I've told you a gazillion times!» It tells the reader that there are a lot, not an exact amount. Children also say zillion, bazillion, squillion, umpteen. In maths it is not a real number like million or billion. Phrases: a gazillion times, gazillions of, a gazillion and one.
examples
- I've asked you a gazillion times to tidy your room! tree →
- There were gazillions of ants on the picnic blanket. tree →
- She has a gazillion stickers in her collection. tree →
- The sky had a gazillion stars that night. tree →
- «How many questions are on the test?» «About a gazillion.» tree →
- The phone game has gazillions of players. tree →
note
Informal; do not use it in serious writing or for a maths answer. A gazillion is NOT a real number: a million is 1,000,000 and a billion is 1,000,000,000, but a gazillion has no value. Other made-up words like it: zillion, jillion, bazillion, squillion. In a word problem, «a gazillion» is exaggeration and gives no number to calculate with.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «gazillion» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.