Names of Large Numbers - Standard Dictionary Numbers

Standard Dictionary Numbers

Name Short scale
(U.S. and
modern British)
Long scale
(continental Europe,
older British)
Authorities
AHD4 CED COD OED2 OEDnew RHD2 SOED3 W3 UM
Million 106 106
Milliard 109
Billion 109 1012
Trillion 1012 1018
Quadrillion 1015 1024
Quintillion 1018 1030
Sextillion 1021 1036
Septillion 1024 1042
Octillion 1027 1048
Nonillion 1030 1054
Decillion 1033 1060
Undecillion 1036 1066
Duodecillion 1039 1072
Tredecillion 1042 1078
Quattuordecillion 1045 1084
Quindecillion (Quinquadecillion) 1048 1090
Sexdecillion (Sedecillion) 1051 1096
Septendecillion 1054 10102
Octodecillion 1057 10108
Novemdecillion (Novendecillion) 1060 10114
Vigintillion 1063 10120
Centillion 10303 10600
Name Value Authorities
AHD4 CED COD OED2 OEDnew RHD2 SOED3 W3 UM
Googol 10100
Googolplex 10Googol

Apart from million, the words in this list ending with -illion are all derived by adding prefixes (bi-, tri-, etc., derived from Latin) to the stem -illion. Centillion appears to be the highest name ending in -"illion" that is included in these dictionaries. Trigintillion, often cited as a word in discussions of names of large numbers, is not included in any of them, nor are any of the names that can easily be created by extending the naming pattern (unvigintillion, duovigintillion, duoquinquagintillion, etc.).

All of the dictionaries included googol and googolplex, generally crediting it to the Kasner and Newman book and to Kasner's nephew. None include any higher names in the googol family (googolduplex, etc.). The Oxford English Dictionary comments that googol and googolplex are "not in formal mathematical use".

Read more about this topic:  Names Of Large Numbers

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