total
total [total totals totalled totaled totalling totaling] adjective, noun, verb BrE [ˈtəʊtl] NAmE [ˈtoʊtl]
adjective usually before noun
1. being the amount or number after everyone or everything is counted or added together
•the total profit
• This brought the total number of accidents so far this year to 113.
• The club has a total membership of 300.
2. including everything
Syn: ↑complete
• The room was in total darkness.
• They wanted a total ban on handguns.
•The evening was a total disaster.
•I can't believe you'd tell a total stranger about it!
•These comments indicate a total lack of understanding.
Word Origin:
late Middle English: via Old French from medieval Latin totalis, from totum ‘the whole’, neuter of Latin totus ‘whole, entire’. The verb, at first in the sense ‘add up’, dates from the late 16th cent.
Example Bank:
•I always expect total honesty from my employees.
•She was a total mystery to him despite their long association.
•Six years of total war had left no citizen untouched.
•The club has a total membership of about 300.
•The emperor demanded total submission from his subjects.
•The evening was a total disaster!
•The game ended in a total rout.
•The total profit was more than £500.
•There was a look of total concentration on her face.
•They demanded a total ban on handguns.
•They were to surrender immediately or face total annihilation.
•a complete/total surprise/idiot/waste of time/lack of understanding
•complete/total agreement/honesty/darkness
noun
the amount you get when you add several numbers or amounts together; the final number of people or things when they have all been counted
•You got 47 points on the written examination and 18 on the oral, making a total of 65.
•His businesses are worth a combined total of $3 billion.
•Out of a total of 15 games, they only won 2.
•The repairs came to over £500 in total (= including everything).
see also ↑grand total, ↑running total, ↑sum total
Word Origin:
late Middle English: via Old French from medieval Latin totalis, from totum ‘the whole’, neuter of Latin totus ‘whole, entire’. The verb, at first in the sense ‘add up’, dates from the late 16th cent.
Example Bank:
•180 vehicles out of a total of 900 examined were not roadworthy.
•A donation of $250 has been received, bringing the total to $3 750.
•Britain's jobless total rose by 20 000 last month.
•He won a career total of 19 gold medals.
•His two goals give him a grand total of 32 for the season.
•In total, they spent 420 hours on the project.
•Players keep a running total of the score.
•The Greens achieved a total of 18 seats.
•The sum total of my knowledge is not impressive.
•Their earnings were €250, €300 and €420, giving a total of €970.
•We had an early vote total of about 1.7 million people.
•a record total of victories
•I try to keep a running total of how much I'm spending.
•That makes a grand total of 220 dollars.
•The repairs come to over £500 in total.
•You got 47 points in the last game and 18 in this one, making a total of 65.
verb (-ll-, US also -l-)
1. ~ sth to reach a particular total
•Imports totalled $1.5 billion last year.
2. ~ sth/sb (up) to add up the numbers of sth/sb and get a total
•Each student's points were totalled and entered in a list.
3. ~ sth (informal, especially NAmE)to damage a car very badly, so that it is not worth repairing it
see also ↑write something off
Verb forms: 
Word Origin:
late Middle English: via Old French from medieval Latin totalis, from totum ‘the whole’, neuter of Latin totus ‘whole, entire’. The verb, at first in the sense ‘add up’, dates from the late 16th cent.
Example Bank:
•Each student's points were totalled and entered in a list.
•She never forgave him for totaling her car.
•Imports totalled $1.5 billion last year.
•In 2005–6, college enrolments totalled some 5 400.
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