Other forms: sums; summed; summing
When you determine the sum, you add up all the numbers. When you sum something up, you focus on all of its important points.
The word sum can also refer to a certain amount of money. A new car might cost you a huge sum of money. But if you sum or add up all its benefits, you might be able to justify spending so much. You calculate the total on a restaurant bill when you sum up the prices of everything you ordered. Sum doesn't have to refer strictly to numbers. When you sum something up, you're giving an overview or general statement about it.
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a quantity obtained by the addition of a group of numberstypes:grand totalthe sum of the sums of several groups of numberssubtotalthe sum of part of a group of numberstype of:quantitythe concept that something has a magnitude and can be represented in mathematical expressions by a constant or a variable
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a set containing all and only the members of two or more given setstypes:direct suma union of two disjoint sets in which every element is the sum of an element from each of the disjoint setstype of:seta group of things of the same kind that belong together and are so used
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the whole amount
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the final aggregate“the sum of all our troubles did not equal the misery they suffered”types:type of:accumulation, aggregation, assemblage, collectionseveral things grouped together or considered as a whole
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a quantity of money“he borrowed a large sum”synonyms: amount, amount of money, sum of moneytypes:gainthe amount by which the revenue of a business exceeds its cost of operatingcash surrender valuethe amount that the insurance company will pay on a given life insurance policy if the policy is cancelled prior to the death of the insuredcontributionan amount of money contributeddeductible(taxes) an amount that can be deducted (especially for the purposes of calculating income tax)defalcationthe sum of money that is misappropriatedfigurean amount of money expressed numericallypeanutsan insignificant sum of money; a trifling amountpursea sum of money offered as a prizepursea sum of money spoken of as the contents of a money pursefinancial gainthe amount of monetary gainbox officetotal admission receipts for an entertainmentgatetotal admission receipts at a sports eventpaper profitan unrealized gain on an investment calculated by subtracting the investor's cost from the current market pricepaper lossan unrealized loss on an investment calculated by subtracting the current market price from the investor's costsqueezea situation in which increased costs cannot be passed on to the customertype of:assetsanything of material value or usefulness that is owned by a person or company
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the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experiencesynonyms: center, centre, core, essence, gist, heart, heart and soul, inwardness, kernel, marrow, meat, nitty-gritty, nub, pith, substancetypes:bare bones(plural) the most basic facts or elementshypostasis(metaphysics) essential nature or underlying realityhaecceity, quidditythe essence that makes something the kind of thing it is and makes it different from any otherstuffa critically important or characteristic componenttype of:cognitive content, content, mental objectthe sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned
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determine the sum of
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be a summary of
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Vocabulary lists containing sum
A thorough survey of various textbooks, assignments, content area standards, and examinations yields the following list of words compiled by Jim Burke. You cannot expect to succeed on assignments if you do not understand the directions.
