multibillionadj.
/ˌmʌltɪˈbɪljən/, U.S. /ˌməltiˈbɪlj(ə)n/, /ˌməltaɪˈbɪlj(ə)n/; see also multi- comb. form. 1. With a monetary unit (usually pounds or dollars): to a value of several or many billions. With ellipsis of the monetary unit: costing or valued at several billions of pounds (dollars, etc.).
ΚΠ
1916 I. Fisher in Annalist 21 Feb. 272/3 We find that the foreign trade which the war has caused..is of little permanent account in a country which today is a multi-billion dollar nation.
1963 Observer 31 Mar. 27/3 A background of multi-billion defence spending.
1971 New Scientist 28 Jan. 184 What would be the practical and scientific benefits of a multibillion dollar space station?
1990 M. Rowe So Very English (BNC) 244 Women were made to get thinner and thinner for the convenience of the multi-billion dress designing industry.
1991 C. Aubrey Melt Down v. 70 A multi-billion pound public company.
2. With other (non-monetary) units: having or involving several or many billions of the unit specified.
ΚΠ
1947 E. O. Lawrence in Centennial Sheffield Sci. School (1950) 24 The Bevatron..a high-energy multi-billion volt proton accelerator.
1976 Nature 9 Sept. 101/1 Such detonations are characterised by very short time scales and multibillion degree temperatures.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1916- prosoviet
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