prime number
noun
a positive integer that is not divisible without remainder by any integer except itself and 1, with 1 often excluded.
prime numbers
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pluralof prime number.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
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.
To unlock it, bad actors would have to figure out which prime numbers were multiplied together to produce the key, a vexing task.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
A nice historical example of the good kind of hard problem centers on Bernhard Riemann—but work far removed from prime numbers and the hypothesis that bears his name.
From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2026
That prime numbers form the foundation of contemporary cryptography is something you can watch YouTube videos about, though it feels like some big revelation here.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 21, 2025
For one thing, current math benchmarks are mostly pitched to high school or undergraduate-level math—a far cry from research-level math, which often tackles notorious problems unsolved for centuries, such as the distribution of prime numbers.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 2, 2024
The closer we got to school, the more nervous I became, so I started counting prime numbers in my head again.
From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine
