What Are Factors and Multiples?

What You'll Learn

• The factors of 12 are 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12
• A multiple is what you get when you multiply a number by a whole number
• 12 is a multiple of 4, and 4 is a factor of 12 — two views of the same relationship
• A prime number has exactly two factors: 1 and itself (like 7)
• The number 1 is neither prime nor composite

Words to Know

Factor

A number that divides another number exactly, with no leftovers.

1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12 are factors of 12.

Multiple

A number you get when you skip-count by a number.

4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 are multiples of 4.

Prime number

A number with only two factors: 1 and itself.

7 is prime because its only factors are 1 and 7.

Composite number

A number with more than two factors.

12 is composite because it has six factors.

Remainder

The amount left over when one number does not divide another exactly.

5 divided by 2 leaves a remainder of 1.

Product

The answer you get when you multiply two numbers.

The product of 3 and 4 is 12.

Check What You Learned

Fun Facts

• A factor is a whole number that divides another whole number exactly, with no remainder

  Source: Khan Academy

• The factors of 12 are 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12

  Source: Khan Academy

• A multiple of a number is the product of that number and any whole number — the multiples of 4 are 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and so on

  Source: Khan Academy

• 12 is a multiple of 4, and 4 is a factor of 12 — two ways to describe the same relationship

  Source: Illustrative Mathematics

• The number 1 is a factor of every whole number

  Source: Khan Academy

• A prime number has exactly two factors: 1 and itself — for example, 7

  Source: Khan Academy