totaled or totalled; totaling or totalling
Examples of total in a Sentence
Adjective
a total lack of support
a total eclipse of the sun
He demanded total control of the project.
What was the total amount of the bill?
the total number of words
The country has a total population of about 100 million.
Noun
a total of 25 square miles
that's the total for our wheat harvest this year
Verb
He carefully totaled the bill.
two and two total four
Recent Examples on the Web
Konstantin Toropin, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
After finishing with 103 points in 2021-22, their last playoff appearances, the Penguins saw their point total fall to 91, 88 and then 80 last season.
—Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2026
Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
Johnson’s Spurs upped their win total by 28 games and are viewed as the top Western Conference challengers to defending champion Oklahoma City.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 20 Apr. 2026
ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026
Tuesday’s filing said that as of April 9 some 56,497 importers had completed the process to receive electronic refunds for tariffs affected by the court’s ruling, an amount totaling $127 billion.
—Reuters, NBC news, 15 Apr. 2026
Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2025
Hot 100 and 45 weeks total on the chart.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 25 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for total
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show current usage.
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Adjective
The Navy has 16 warships — 11 destroyers, three amphibious assault ships, an aircraft carrier and a littoral combat ship — in the Middle East out of a battle force of roughly 300 total warships.
—Konstantin Toropin, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
After finishing with 103 points in 2021-22, their last playoff appearances, the Penguins saw their point total fall to 91, 88 and then 80 last season.
—Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2026
Noun
In 2023, the company worked on fewer than fifty ransomware recoveries; last year, the total was nearly three hundred.
—Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
Johnson’s Spurs upped their win total by 28 games and are viewed as the top Western Conference challengers to defending champion Oklahoma City.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
Since the 2018 reforms began requiring the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights to report awards and settlements related to formal complaints, there have been eight payments made by House members' offices, totaling just over $400,000.
—ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026
Tuesday’s filing said that as of April 9 some 56,497 importers had completed the process to receive electronic refunds for tariffs affected by the court’s ruling, an amount totaling $127 billion.
—Reuters, NBC news, 15 Apr. 2026
Adverb
Collecting three weeks total atop the Billboard 200, Eternal Sunshine got a second life earlier this year with a deluxe edition released a few months after the November premiere of Wicked.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2025
Hot 100 and 45 weeks total on the chart.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 25 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for total
Cite this Entry
“Total.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/total. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
total
1 of 3 adjective
to·tal
ˈtōt-ᵊl 
1
: of or relating to the whole of something
a total eclipse of the sun
2
: making up the whole
the total amount
3
: being such to the fullest degree
total ruin
4
: making use of every means to do something
total war
total
2 of 3 noun1
: a product of addition : sum
2
: an entire amount
total
3 of 3 verb
totaled or totalled; totaling or totalling
1
2
: to amount to
donations totaled $120
3
: to make a total wreck of
totaled the car
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