Large Numbers, Count Nouns in the News
2024-04-26
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1We have a question for you.
2What do countries, economies, mathematics, and the news have in common?
3There are several ways to answer the question.
4But today we are thinking about this connection: large numbers.
5Large numbers, say, a million and up, appear all the time in everyday situations and especially in news reports.
6These large numbers come along with a kind of noun known as a count noun.
7In today's Everyday Grammar, we will learn about the history and usage of large numbers.
8We will look at some modern examples and then give you a chance to practice writing about large numbers.
9Let's begin our story with the word "million."
10It has a connection with a thousand, as we will see.
11But first, we make a trip to the ancient past.
12We can clean off the dusty books of history and find clues about the beginnings of "million."
13We see "mille," a Latin word which suggests a thousand.
14We find evidence of "mille" through time.
15We have the Italian "millione" and "million" in Old French.
16We find "million" in English, appearing around the late 1300s, with the meaning of a thousand thousands.
17"Million" serves as the starting point for even larger numbers to come.
18We get a "billion," a word that mixes "bi-", a word element that suggests the idea of two, with the word "million."
19Later, we get "trillion," a word that mixes "tri-," a word element that suggests three, and the word "million."
20The story of large numbers in English is complex.
21There are so-called long and short-scale systems.
22But you do not need to worry about such issues.
23For our purposes, we can use the modern American definitions from Merriam Webster.
24We arrive at these definitions: a million is equal to 1,000 times 1,000; a billion is equal to 1,000 times one million; a trillion is equal to 1,000 times one billion.
25The central idea is to define bigger numbers like a million, billion, or trillion based on some relationship with one thousand.
26Now that we have some definitions in mind, we can turn to some questions.
27Why might large numbers matter?
28Here is one answer: large numbers - millions, billions, trillions - appear all the time in the news.
29The large number is often what draws attention or creates interest.
30You might also be wondering how this discussion of large numbers connects to grammar.
31Here, the idea is less about the numbers themselves and more about the things - in this case, the nouns - that the numbers describe.
32In particular, we use these large numbers to describe count nouns - nouns that we are able to count with numbers.
33And in the news, there are several count nouns commonly used with large numbers: dollars, people, and years.
34Here are a few examples:
35Consider this headline published earlier this year by VOA News:
36US National Debt Hits Record $34 Trillion as Congress Gears up for Funding Fight
37Here, we have the number, 34 trillion, describing a count noun: dollars.
38The dollar is the official money of the United States.
39But news stories in your country might use other kinds of money such as the euro, the peso, and so on.
40News stories about trade, finance, and economies are very likely to contain this structure: large number + the name of the currency.
41Now consider this section from a science story that recently appeared on the VOA Learning English website:
42Marine reptiles lived in the world's oceans at the same time that dinosaurs lived on the land. Ichthyosaurs disappeared 90 million years ago.
43In this example, we have the large number 90 million describing the count noun "years."
44Science stories - particularly stories about ancient times and outer space - often center on a point in time long ago.
45So, keep an eye out for this structure: large number + years (or years ago).
46Finally, let's consider a short example from another VOA Learning English report.
47The subject this time is an English test. We learn about the number of people who took the test:
48The 2023 EF English Proficiency Index (EPI) ranks countries and areas by English proficiency.
49The index is based on test results from 2.2 million people in 113 countries.
50Here, we have the number 2.2 million describing the count noun "people."
51Stories about studies, elections, populations, and so on, often involve this structure: large number + people.
52In today's lesson, we covered a lot of territory.
53We looked into the past and explored the present.
54And, we can report that we used about 800 words to present the subject of large numbers and count nouns.
55We will end today's lesson with a call to action.
56We would like you to link the ideas we have explored with something connected to your country.
57Please write us 1-2 sentences about a large number - million, billion, or trillion - that connects with an event or situation in your country or area.
58For example, you might write "My country's GDP is around 10 trillion dollars," or "My government spends 100 billion dollars on health care."
59You can send your sentences in an email to learningenglish@voanews.com
60In a future lesson, we will give feedback on some of the messages we receive.
61I'm John Russell.
1We have a question for you. What do countries, economies, mathematics, and the news have in common? 2There are several ways to answer the question. But today we are thinking about this connection: large numbers. 3Large numbers, say, a million and up, appear all the time in everyday situations and especially in news reports. These large numbers come along with a kind of noun known as a count noun. 4In today's Everyday Grammar, we will learn about the history and usage of large numbers. We will look at some modern examples and then give you a chance to practice writing about large numbers. 5Let's begin our story with the word "million." It has a connection with a thousand, as we will see. But first, we make a trip to the ancient past. 6Definitions and history 7We can clean off the dusty books of history and find clues about the beginnings of "million." We see "mille," a Latin word which suggests a thousand. 8We find evidence of "mille" through time. We have the Italian "millione" and "million" in Old French. We find "million" in English, appearing around the late 1300s, with the meaning of a thousand thousands. 9"Million" serves as the starting point for even larger numbers to come. We get a "billion," a word that mixes "bi-", a word element that suggests the idea of two, with the word "million." 10Later, we get "trillion," a word that mixes "tri-," a word element that suggests three, and the word "million." 11The story of large numbers in English is complex. There are so-called long and short-scale systems. But you do not need to worry about such issues. For our purposes, we can use the modern American definitions from Merriam Webster. 12We arrive at these definitions: a million is equal to 1,000 times 1,000; a billion is equal to 1,000 times one million; a trillion is equal to 1,000 times one billion. 13The central idea is to define bigger numbers like a million, billion, or trillion based on some relationship with one thousand. 14Usage 15Now that we have some definitions in mind, we can turn to some questions. 16Why might large numbers matter? 17Here is one answer: large numbers - millions, billions, trillions - appear all the time in the news. The large number is often what draws attention or creates interest. 18You might also be wondering how this discussion of large numbers connects to grammar. 19Here, the idea is less about the numbers themselves and more about the things - in this case, the nouns - that the numbers describe. In particular, we use these large numbers to describe count nouns - nouns that we are able to count with numbers. 20And in the news, there are several count nouns commonly used with large numbers: dollars, people, and years. 21Here are a few examples: 22Dollars 23Consider this headline published earlier this year by VOA News: 24US National Debt Hits Record $34 Trillion as Congress Gears up for Funding Fight 25Here, we have the number, 34 trillion, describing a count noun: dollars. The dollar is the official money of the United States. But news stories in your country might use other kinds of money such as the euro, the peso, and so on. 26News stories about trade, finance, and economies are very likely to contain this structure: large number + the name of the currency. 27Years 28Now consider this section from a science story that recently appeared on the VOA Learning English website: 29Marine reptiles lived in the world's oceans at the same time that dinosaurs lived on the land. Ichthyosaurs disappeared 90 million years ago. 30In this example, we have the large number 90 million describing the count noun "years." Science stories - particularly stories about ancient times and outer space - often center on a point in time long ago. So, keep an eye out for this structure: large number + years (or years ago). 31People 32Finally, let's consider a short example from another VOA Learning English report. The subject this time is an English test. We learn about the number of people who took the test: 33The 2023 EF English Proficiency Index (EPI) ranks countries and areas by English proficiency. The index is based on test results from 2.2 million people in 113 countries. 34Here, we have the number 2.2 million describing the count noun "people." 35Stories about studies, elections, populations, and so on, often involve this structure: large number + people. 36Closing thoughts and call to action 37In today's lesson, we covered a lot of territory. We looked into the past and explored the present. And, we can report that we used about 800 words to present the subject of large numbers and count nouns. 38We will end today's lesson with a call to action. We would like you to link the ideas we have explored with something connected to your country. 39Please write us 1-2 sentences about a large number - million, billion, or trillion - that connects with an event or situation in your country or area. For example, you might write "My country's GDP is around 10 trillion dollars," or "My government spends 100 billion dollars on health care." 40You can send your sentences in an email to learningenglish@voanews.com 41In a future lesson, we will give feedback on some of the messages we receive. 42I'm John Russell. 43John Russell wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 44________________________________________________ 45Words in This Story 46count noun - n. a noun that forms a plural and is used with a numeral 47gear up for - phrasal verb - to prepare; get ready for