What is a prime number?
A whole number greater than 1 that can only be divided by 1 and by itself: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13… Every other number can be written as a product of primes, its prime factorization.
Example
360 = 2³ × 3² × 5. It has (3 + 1) × (2 + 1) × (1 + 1) = 24 divisors. The next prime is 367.
Frequently asked questions
Is 1 a prime number?
No. By definition a prime has exactly two different divisors, and 1 has only one.
See also
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