Numbers Business Vocabulary

Words and phrases are used in describing numbers and arithmetic, with definitions and example sentences. Free for students of business English who need to learn business vocabulary. Business English for ESL learners.
Definition

Numbers are everywhere in the world around us. They are a part of our everyday lives, whether we realize it or not. From the moment we wake up, we start counting the hours, minutes, and seconds until we go to bed at night. We use numbers to keep track of time, money, and age. We use them to measure distance, weight, and height. We use them to count how many days we've been alive, how many steps we've taken, and how many breaths we've taken.

Numbers are an important part of our lives, but what do they really mean? What is their purpose?

The definition of a number is "a quantity or value expressed as one or more figures representing a specified amount." In other words, a number is a way to represent a quantity. We use numbers to represent how much of something there is.

Examples

For example, when we count the number of days in a week, we are really just representing the quantity of days. We could represent the days with words (seven), but it's much easier to just use the number 7. The number 7 is a symbol that represents the quantity of days in a week.

1

add

v. to put one number together with another [eg: 2 plus 2] - addition n.

2

billion

n. 1,000,000,000; one thousand million; 109

3

divide

v. 2 ÷ 2 [is expressed as] two divided by two - division n.

4

equal

v. to be the same as [eg: 2 + 2 equals 4]

5

giga

one billion

6

hundred

n. 100; 102

7

kilo

one thousand - k, K abbr.

8

mega

one million - M abbr.

9

million

n. 1,000,000; one thousand thousand; 106

10

minus

p. 2 - 2 [is expressed as] two minus two

11

multiply

v. 2 x 2 [is expressed as] two multiplied by two - multiplication n.

12

plus

p. 2 + 2 [is expressed as] two plus two

13

square

v. to multiply a number by the same number [eg: 3 squared = 9]

14

square root

n. number that multiplied by itself gives a certain number [3 is the square root of 9]

15

subtract

v. to deduct one number from another [eg: 2 minus 2] - subtraction n.

16

thousand

n. 1,000; 103

17

times

p. 2 x 2 [is expressed as] two times two - see multiply

18

to the power of

multiplication of a number by itself [eg: 2 to the power of 3 = 8]

19

trillion

n.1,000,000,000,000; a million million; 1012

20

zero

n. 0; oh; nought

Conclusion

Numbers can also be used to represent relationships between things. For example, we can use numbers to show how much bigger or smaller one thing is compared to another. If we say that the sun is about 93 million miles away from Earth, we are using a number to show the relationship between the sun and Earth.

Numbers are a powerful tool that we use to understand and describe the world around us. They help us to communicate and to make sense of the world.