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Least Common Multiple: Let's Start With An Example ..

The least common multiple (LCM) is the smallest positive number that is a multiple of two or more numbers. To find the LCM, list the multiples of each number and take the first number that is common to both or all lists. For example, the LCM of 3 and 5 is 15, as 15 is the first number that is a multiple of both 3 and 5. The LCM can be found for any number of numbers by listing their multiples and taking the first number common to all lists.

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225 views3 pages

Least Common Multiple: Let's Start With An Example ..

The least common multiple (LCM) is the smallest positive number that is a multiple of two or more numbers. To find the LCM, list the multiples of each number and take the first number that is common to both or all lists. For example, the LCM of 3 and 5 is 15, as 15 is the first number that is a multiple of both 3 and 5. The LCM can be found for any number of numbers by listing their multiples and taking the first number common to all lists.

Uploaded by

Nilo Valera
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Least Common Multiple

The smallest positive number that is a multiple of two or more numbers.

Let's start with an Example ... 


Least Common Multiple of 3 and 5:

List the Multiples of each number,

The multiples of 3 are 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, ... etc


The multiples of 5 are 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, ... etc

Find the first Common (same) value:

The Least Common Multiple of 3 and 5 is 15

(15 is a multiple of both 3 and 5, and is the smallest number like that.)

So ... what is a "Multiple" ?


We get a multiple of a number when we multiply it by another number.
Such as multiplying by 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc, but not zero. Just like the
multiplication table.

Here are some examples:

The multiples of 4 are: 4,8,12,16,20,24,28,32,36,40,44,...


The multiples of 5 are: 5,10,15,20,25,30,35,40,45,50,...
What is a "Common Multiple" ?
Say we have listed the first few multiples of 4 and 5: the common
multiples are those that are found in both lists:

The multiples of 4 are: 4,8,12,16,20,24,28,32,36,40,44,...


The multiples of 5 are: 5,10,15,20,25,30,35,40,45,50,...

Notice that 20 and 40 appear in both lists?


So, the common multiples of 4 and 5 are: 20, 40, (and 60, 80, etc ..., too)

What is the "Least Common


Multiple" ?
It is simply the smallest of the common multiples.

In our previous example, the smallest of the common multiples is 20 ...

... so the Least Common Multiple of 4 and 5 is 20.

Finding the Least Common Multiple


List the multiples of the numbers until we get our first match.

Example: Find the least common multiple of 4 and 10:

The multiples of 4 are: 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, ...


and the multiples of 10 are: 10, 20, ...

Aha! there is a match at 20. It looks like this:

So the least common multiple of 4 and 10 is 20


Example: Find the least common multiple of 6 and 15:

The multiples of 6 are: 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, ...


and the multiples of 15 are: 15, 30, ...

There is a match at 30

So the least common multiple of 6 and 15 is 30

More than 2 Numbers


We can also find the least common multiple of three (or more) numbers.

Example: Find the least common multiple of 4, 6, and 8

Multiples of 4 are: 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, ...


Multiples of 6 are: 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, ...
Multiples of 8 are: 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, ....

So 24 is the least common multiple (I can't find a smaller one!)

Hint: We can have smaller lists for the bigger numbers.

Least Common Multiple Tool


There is another method: the Least Common Multiple Tool does it automatically.
(Yes, we waited until the end to tell you!)

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