common divisor

noun

, Mathematics.

1. a number that is a submultiple of all the numbers of a given set.

common divisor

noun

1. another name for common factor

common divisor

1. A number that is a factor of two or more numbers. For example, 3 is a common divisor of both 9 and 15.
2. Also called common factor

Word History and Origins

Origin of common divisor¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Example Sentences

Strategy 1 can be generalized if ƒ and t have a common divisor m that doesn’t divide d:

From Scientific American

There is a mathematical explanation for the auditory illusion in my example, sometimes called the missing fundamental: The perceived pitch is the greatest common divisor of the frequencies of the sine waves present.

From Scientific American

The conjecture, first proposed in the 1980s, considers a simple equation of three integers, a + b = c, where the three integers do not share any common divisors other than 1.

From New York Times

The reader probably never has had occasion to compute a greatest common divisor since he left school.

From Project Gutenberg

The greatest common divisor of all the minorities that go to making a winning national combination must be neutral, he must be colorless, he must not know that his soul is his own.

From Project Gutenberg