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tons

If you have tons of something, you have an enormous amount of it, like when you buy tons of ice cream for your birthday party.

The informal tons is perfect for exaggerating, making a large quantity sound even bigger. You might say, "I have tons of friends at my new school" or "Your library is tiny — my library has tons more books!" It's a way to play up size or amount while still being vague. Tons comes from ton, which is often used colloquially ("I ate a ton of pasta"), but is also a precise unit for measuring weight.

Definitions of tons
  1. noun
    a large number or amount
    see moresee less
    type of:
    large indefinite amount, large indefinite quantity
    an indefinite quantity that is above the average in size or magnitude
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘tons'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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