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GCSE Mathematics · key term
A whole number greater than 1 with exactly two positive factors: 1 and itself.
Used by AQA, Edexcel and OCR
Specification N4 · Paper 1, Paper 2, Paper 3
Revise: Primes, Factors, and MultiplesA prime number is a whole number greater than 1 with exactly two positive factors: 1 and itself. For example, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 11 are prime. The number 2 is the only even prime.
Specification N4 · Paper 1, Paper 2, Paper 3
An integer greater than 1 with exactly two positive factors: 1 and itself.
Do not describe 1 as prime: a prime number has exactly two positive factors.
In a factor tree, continue until every branch ends in a prime number, then write the answer as a multiplication, not an addition.
Remember that 2 is prime and even, so it provides a counterexample to claims that every prime number is odd.
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Prime factorisation expresses an integer as a product containing prime numbers only. A factor tree makes the repeated decomposition visible. Begin with any factor pair, then split every composite factor again.
Specification 1.02a, 1.02b · Paper 1 (Foundation), Paper 2 (Foundation), Paper 3 (Foundation), Paper 4 (Higher), Paper 5 (Higher), Paper 6 (Higher)
A positive whole number greater than 1 with exactly two positive factors: 1 and itself.
Revise: Number PropertiesA prime number is a positive whole number greater than 1 that has exactly two positive factors: 1 and itself. For example, 7 is prime because its only positive factors are 1 and 7. By contrast, 8 is not prime because it also has factors 2 and 4.
A whole number greater than 1 with exactly two distinct positive factors: 1 and itself.