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sulphur butterfly
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sum (1)
sum (2)
sum total
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sum (1)

sum [ sum ]


noun  (plural sums)
Definition:
 
1. money: an amount of money

2. total: the total amount resulting when two or more numbers or quantities are added together

3. arithmetical calculation: a mathematical problem involving adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing numbers, especially one given to students to solve

4. combined total: the combined total amount or quantity of something

5. mathematics limit of sum of series: the limit, as n increases indefinitely, of the sum of the first n terms of an infinite series

6. gist: the essential point of something that somebody has said or written ( literary )



transitive verb  (past and past participle summed, present participle sum·ming, 3rd person present singular sums)
Definition:
 
add up amounts: to add together two or more amounts to find their total ( formal )

[13th century. Via French< Latin summa "sum, substance" < form of summus "highest"]

sum·ma·bil·i·ty [ sùmmə bíllətee ] noun
sum·ma·ble adjective

in sum in short or as a summary


Spelling Note

See some.


Word History

The semantic development of sum from "highest" to "sum total" resulted from the Roman practice of counting columns of figures from the bottom upward, the total being written at the top.

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