sum total

noun

Updated on: 11 Apr 2018

Definition of sum total

1 : a total arrived at through the counting of sums

2 : total result : totality

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Examples of sum total in a Sentence

in this case the sum total of physical evidence that a crime has been committed wouldn't fill a thimble

Recent Examples of sum total from the Web

The sum total of the Heat’s free agent spending suggested that might be the case.

— rob mahoney, SI.com, "Breakaway: Wayne Ellington's Journey From Indistinguishable to Indispensable," 5 Apr. 2018
That was the sum total of a social media discussion Wednesday centered around the Xavier University men's basketball team's use of a plane as its mode of travel to Nashville for the NCAA Tournament this week as opposed to traveling south via bus.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "No, Xavier didn't violate NCAA rules by flying to Nashville," 15 Mar. 2018
So, the sum total benefit to the Prime over the normal Prius is rather meager.

— jim resnick, Ars Technica, "Review: Toyota’s new Prius Prime needs more battery," 24 Jan. 2018
Already, science has begun to see an individual like Bourassa as the sum total of all that came before, all the events and actors in both his life and the lives of his parents, and so on.

— elijah wolfson, Newsweek, "My Genes Did It!," 5 Mar. 2014
But one year of Trump’s Executive branch has already vastly exceeded the sum total of malfeasance in the previous eight.

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Rereading Trump’s Inaugural Address, One Year Later," 19 Jan. 2018
This is far from the sum total of alcohol’s negative effects—even just on sleep.

— olga khazan, The Atlantic, "Even Small Amounts of Alcohol Impair Memory," 15 Dec. 2017
In addition to those restrictions, the plan would also spread funds to every state based on the sum total of existing Medicaid expansion allotments—meaning that states that haven’t expanded Medicaid would siphon off money from states that have.

— vann r. newkirk ii, The Atlantic, "The Graham-Cassidy Obamacare Repeal Bill Still Covers Fewer People," 18 Sep. 2017
Bean-counting the sum total of executive orders tells us nothing useful about the effects of those orders; one action could be more consequential than 15, or 50.

— david harsanyi, National Review, "Trump’s Executive Moves Have Strengthened Checks and Balances," 20 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sum total.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of sum total

14th century

sum total Synonyms

Phrases

grand total, the whole bit, the whole kit and caboodle, the whole nine yards, the whole shebang;

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