number theory

American  

noun

Mathematics.

1. the study of integers and their relation to one another.

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number theory British  

noun

1. the study of integers, their properties, and the relationship between integers

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Etymology

Origin of number theory

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

number theory

Inspired by Coxon and a formula in number theory known as the Chicken McNugget Theorem, they pooled their remaining food vouchers and bought hundreds of nuggets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

But OpenAI’s solution drew on methods from a seemingly unrelated field, algebraic number theory, which studies deep patterns in numbers and the structures built from them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

A mathematician may spend a career in discrete geometry without developing any familiarity with the sophisticated tools of algebraic number theory.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

The tide didn’t begin to turn until Feb. 6, when price action staged a near-textbook defense of the $60,000 level, reinforcing round number theory.

From Barron's ● Apr. 22, 2026

A strong streak of romanticism runs through mathematics, manifesting itself most clearly in the most fundamental areas of mathematics, number theory and logic.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos