Origin

from Greek gigas giant

giga-

word-forming element meaning "billion" (U.S.) in the metric system, 1947, formed arbitrarily from Greek gigas "giant" (see giant).

giga- /ˈgʌɪgə, ˈgɪgə, dʒ-/ combining form. M20.

ORIGIN: from Greek gigas giant.

Used in names of units etc. to denote a factor of 10⁹ (one thousand million), as gigahertz, gigametre, gigawatt; also in Computing, used to denote a factor of 2³⁰, as gigabit. Abbreviation G.

DERIVATIVE gigabyte noun (Computing) a unit of information equal to one thousand million (10⁹) bytes or (strictly) 2³⁰ bytes L20.

giga-

combining form. 1 billion:

Gigavolt = 1 billion volts.

[< Greek gígās giant]

giga-
\ˈjigə, ˈgigə\ combining form
Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary, from Greek gigas giant
: billion
< gigacycle >
< gigavolt >

giga-

SI prefix
G
	Previous:	mega-
	Next:	tera-

(UK) IPA: /ˈɡɪɡə/, /ˈɡaɪɡə/

(US) IPA: /ˈɡɪɡə/, /ˈdʒɪɡə/

Prefix

In the International System of Units and other metric systems of units, multiplying the unit to which it is attached by 10⁹; billion-. Symbol: G
computing Multiplying the unit to which it is attached by 2³⁰ or 1,073,741,824

Etymology

From Ancient Greek γίγας (gígas, “giant”); cognate to giant.

Usage notes

In computing, meaning is ambiguous between 10⁹ = 1,000,000,000 and 2³⁰ = 1,073,741,824. For precision, gibi- specifically means the binary 2³⁰; see binary prefix for discussion.

Synonyms

(2³⁰): gibi-

Antonyms

nano-

Derived terms

English words prefixed with giga-

gibi-

gigabyte

gigaflop

gigahertz

gigajoule

gigawatt

External links

Giga- on Wikipedia.

combining form

Origin

giga-

Prefix

Etymology

Usage notes

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

See also

External links