Trash: Deletes more files then are listed in Trash Finder window

I am trying to clean up my HD.  I have deleted a bunch of files which show up in the Trash finder window (27 items).  When I attempt to securely delete them the Trash window shows over a 1000 items to delete.  How is this possible?  Are there hidden files?  How can I view them to make sure I am not deleting something I didn't put in the trash?
Thanks

This is quite common, and it's a similar issue to every other Finder window, so you shouldn't be too surprised.
Your '27' count is just looking at the number of items (icons) in the Trash window. It's not taking into account embedded files. These most commonly occur with application files which are really bundles of files containing the program code as well as other resources such as icons, images, menus, internationalization resources, etc. It's not uncommon for one .app 'file' to actually consist of hundreds of elements - it's kind of like the same thing as one 'folder' icon containing hundreds of files (and sub-folders) within it.
The Finder (and most human eyes) would simply count to the top-level items, but when you actually empty the trash the OS looks at all those embedded files to determine the true count of items to be deleted.
As for whether you're deleting anything by mistake, just look at those items. If any of them are applications that likely accounts for the count discrepancy. If they're folders, just look in them to see what else will be deleted. In either case you've always got your Time Machine backup to restore from, right?

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