What does it mean word for word?
The phrase miles de millones literally translates to 'thousands of millions'.
Which one should you use?
While miles de millones is used for the plural 'billions', when you need to refer to the specific number one billion, you should use mil millones. The word billón is a false friend. It means one trillion (1,000,000,000,000) rather than one billion.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, un millardo is a common way to express one billion.
How does it change in a sentence?
To avoid confusion with the trillion-scale meaning of billón, always use mil millones when you are referring specifically to the number one billion.
How do you pronounce it?
/miles de miʝones/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use un billón to mean one billion. In Spanish, this actually means one trillion, so use mil millones instead.
Did you know?
- The difference between the English 'billion' and Spanish billón is due to the 'short scale' used in the US and UK versus the 'long scale' used in most of Europe and Spanish-speaking countries.
- The term millardo is used in Spain to mean one billion but is rarely used in Latin American countries where mil millones is preferred.
- The preposition de in the phrase miles de millones is an inherited form from Latin and survives from Old Spanish to connect the quantities.
Examples in context
- Hay miles de millones de estrellas en el cielo.There are billions of stars in the sky.This sentence shows how to use miles de millones to describe a large quantity of stars.Tatoeba #761487 by Shishir, translation #18320 by J_S
- Hay miles de millones de estrellas en el universo.There are billions of stars in the universe.Tatoeba #702579 by Shishir, translation #682265 by Source_VOA
- Argelia todavía invierte miles de millones en desarrollo urbano.Algeria still invests billions in urban development.This sentence shows how to use miles de millones in the context of financial investment.Tatoeba #10181450 by Seael, translation #8580228 by Amastan
- La población mundial supera los siete mil millones de personas.The global population exceeds seven billion people.
- La inversión alcanzó un millardo de dólares.The investment reached one billion dollars.
- Gastó mil millones de dólares en ese proyecto.He/she spent a billion dollars on that project.
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mateo and Lucía are discussing a tech company's valuation.
- MateoEsa empresa tiene miles de millones de dólares.That company has billions of dollars.
- Lucía¿En serio vale miles de millones?Is it really worth billions?
- MateoSí, es un éxito increíble.Yes, it is an incredible success.
- LucíaMateo, eso es una fortuna.Mateo, that is a fortune.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
