least common denominator
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of least common denominator
First recorded in 1870–75
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Will there be a fight over which agency gets to be the least common denominator in setting standards for disclosure?” one research lobbyist wonders.
From Science Magazine • Jan. 10, 2022
“You’ll hear people say that it’s the least common denominator that discourages gifted kids from advancing,” said Elizabeth Hull Barnes, the math supervisor for the district.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 4, 2021
We will apply the Multiplication Property of Equality and multiply both sides of an equation by the least common denominator of all the fractions in the equation.
From Textbooks • Apr. 22, 2020
It’s easier to love something when it feels like it belongs to you and your friends, and much harder to love it when it’s engineered for the least common denominator.
From Slate • Nov. 8, 2017
“Reduced to the least common denominator, Meriwether Lewis and my daughter Theodosia have our fate in their hands.”
From The Magnificent Adventure Being the Story of the World's Greatest Exploration and the Romance of a Very Gallant Gentleman by Hough, Emerson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
