factor

[fak-ter]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR factor ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

one of the elements contributing to a particular result or situation: Poverty is only one of the factors in crime.

Mathematics. one of two or more numbers, algebraic expressions, or the like, that when multiplied together produce a given product; a divisor: 6 and 3 are factors of 18.

Biochemistry. any of certain substances necessary to a biochemical or physiological process, especially those whose exact nature and function are unknown.

a business organization that lends money on accounts receivable or buys and collects accounts receivable.

a person who acts or transacts business for another; an agent.

an agent entrusted with the possession of goods to be sold in the agent's name; a merchant earning a commission by selling goods belonging to others.

a person or business organization that provides money for another's new business venture; one who finances another's business.

factor of production.

Scot. the steward or bailiff of an estate.

verb (used with object)

Mathematics. to express (a mathematical quantity) as a product of two or more quantities of like kind, as 30 = 2·3·5, or x2 − y2 = (x + y) (x − y).Compare expand(def 4a).

to act as a factor for.

verb (used without object)

to act as a factor.

Verb Phrases

factor in/into, to include as an essential element, especially in forecasting or planning: You must factor insurance payments into the cost of maintaining a car.

Origin of factor

1400–50; late Middle English facto(u)r < Latin factor maker, perpetrator, equivalent to fac(ere) to make, do + -tor -tor

Related formsfac·tor·a·ble, adjectivefac·tor·a·bil·i·ty, nounfac·tor·ship, nounsub·fac·tor, nounun·der·fac·tor, nounun·fac·tor·a·ble, adjectiveun·fac·tored, adjective

factor VIII

noun

antihemophilic factor.

Origin of factor VIII

First recorded in 1960–65

factor IX

noun

Christmas factor.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for factor

circumstance, influence, point, component, element, thing, part, aspect, consideration, cause, ingredient, antecedent, means, agency, instrument, agent, item, portion, board, aid

Examples from the Web for factor

Contemporary Examples of factor

Therefore in our view we need to talk about our wood management before any other factor in the maturation of The Macallan.
Why Natural Color Is So Crucial To Understanding A Whisky’s Flavors
December 10, 2014
But hold on: Factor in the runoffs, and things get weird real fast.
How This Election Could Go to January
Michael Tomasky
October 24, 2014
The ability to do that, more than anything else, may just be the true “Francis factor.”
Pope Francis Wins a Battle to Welcome Gays in the Church
Barbie Latza Nadeau
October 20, 2014
After plane loads of wheat seeds were sent to India in the 1960s, farmers there were able to boost production by a factor of four.
Growth Stocks
The Daily Beast
October 17, 2014
All of these may factor into the inability to move the needle on the scale.
‘The Biggest Loser’ Could Be TV’s Most Important Show Ever
Daniela Drake
September 26, 2014

Historical Examples of factor

It exists, and goes forward, becoming a factor in the thought-life of our time.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
And this brings me to an important factor in the case: the factor of evolution.
A Treatise on Parents and Children
George Bernard Shaw
Time is, therefore, not a factor in the mutation of species.
Life: Its True Genesis
R. W. Wright
It was warm and comfortable, and he was playing cribbage with the Factor.
White Fang
Jack London
The other factor depended on the vexed question of means of communication.
The Story of the Great War, Volume II (of VIII)
Various

British Dictionary definitions for factor

factor

noun

an element or cause that contributes to a result

maths

one of two or more integers or polynomials whose product is a given integer or polynomial2 and 3 are factors of 6
an integer or polynomial that can be exactly divided into another integer or polynomial1, 2, 3, and 6 are all factors of 6

(foll by identifying numeral) med any of several substances that participate in the clotting of bloodfactor VIII

a person who acts on another's behalf, esp one who transacts business for another

commerce a business that makes loans in return for or on security of trade debts

former name for a gene

commercial law a person to whom goods are consigned for sale and who is paid a factorage

(in Scotland) the manager of an estate

verb

(intr) to engage in the business of a factor

Word Origin for factor

C15: from Latin: one who acts, from facere to do

usage

Factor (sense 1) should only be used to refer to something which contributes to a result. It should not be used to refer to a part of something such as a plan or arrangement; instead a word such as component or element should be used

factor VIII

noun

a protein that participates in the clotting of blood. It is extracted from donated serum and used in the treatment of the commonest type of haemophilia, in which it is absent

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for factor

early 15c., "agent, deputy," from Middle French facteur "agent, representative," from Latin factor "doer or maker," agent noun from past participle stem of facere "to do" (see factitious). Sense of "circumstance producing a result" is from 1816.

1610s, "act as an agent," from factor (n.). The use in mathematics is attested from 1837. Related: Factored; factoring.

factor in Medicine

factor

[făk′tər]

n.

One that contributes in the cause of an action.

A mathematical component that by multiplication makes up a number or expression.

A gene.

A substance, such as a vitamin, that functions in a specific biochemical reaction or bodily process, such as blood coagulation.

factor VIII

n.

A factor in the clotting of blood, a deficiency of which is associated with hemophilia A.antihemophilic factor antihemophilic globulin antihemophilic globulin A proserum prothrombin conversion accelerator

factor IX

n.

A factor in the clotting of blood necessary for the formation of intrinsic blood thromboplastin; a deficiency of it causes hemophilia B.antihemophilic globulin B Christmas factor

factor in Science

factor

[făk′tər]

Noun

One of two or more numbers or expressions that are multiplied to obtain a given product. For example, 2 and 3 are factors of 6, and a + b and a - b are factors of a2 - b2.

A substance found in the body, such as a protein, that is essential to a biological process. For example, growth factors are needed for proper cell growth and development.

Verb

To find the factors of a number or expression. For example, the number 12 can be factored into 2 and 6, or 3 and 4, or 1 and 12.