total

The word “total” means the full amount reached by adding everything together. In plain terms, the whole amount, or (as an adjective) complete and absolute; informally, to "total" a car means to wreck it completely.

“Total” is pronounced TOH-tl (/ˈtoʊ.tl̩/ in IPA).

Here is “total” used in a sentence: “The total came to just over two hundred dollars.”

Words with a similar meaning to “total” include full, whole, absolute, complete, utter and abject.

The opposite of “total” — its antonyms — are attenuated, conditional, depleted, half-assed and half-baked.

Depending on how it is used, “total” can be a noun, an adjective and a verb.

The word “total” comes from Medieval Latin. From Old French total, from Medieval Latin totalis, from Latin totus, "all, whole, entire.".

“Total” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

In everyday use the two are almost interchangeable, and both mean the result of adding numbers. Sum tends to describe the result of a single addition, while total often suggests the final, complete figure after everything has been counted — the total on a bill, the sum of two numbers.

A subtotal is the sum of one part of a list — for example, the cost of goods before tax and delivery. The total is the final figure once every subtotal and additional charge has been added together. Subtotals are stepping stones; the total is the full amount owed or reached.

You find a total by adding every individual amount together until nothing is left out. On a receipt, that means summing the price of each item, plus any tax or charges. The total is complete only when every relevant figure has been included in the addition.

If a shopping basket holds items at £3, £5 and £2, the total is £10. A team's total points across a season, or the total rainfall for a year, work the same way — every individual figure added together to give one complete, final amount.