What is the least common multiple of 18 and 27?

What is a Least Common Multiple?

A least common multiple (LCM) is the smallest number that two or more numbers can be divided into evenly. In other words, it is the smallest number that can be divided by all of the numbers in question. For example, if you have two numbers, 3 and 4, the LCM is 12.

How to Calculate the LCM of 18 and 27

In order to calculate the LCM of 18 and 27, you must first determine the prime factors of each number. To do this, divide each number by the smallest prime factor (2) until it can no longer be divided. In the case of 18, this is 2 x 3 x 3. For 27, it is 3 x 3 x 3. The common factors between these two numbers are 3 x 3, so the LCM of 18 and 27 is 3 x 3 x 3, which is equal to 81.

Finding the LCM With Multiples

Another way to find the LCM of 18 and 27 is to look for the smallest multiple that both numbers share. To do this, start with the smallest multiple of 18 (18) and then look for the smallest multiple of 27 (27) that is greater than 18. In this case, the smallest multiple of 27 that is greater than 18 is 54, which is also the LCM of 18 and 27.

Conclusion

The least common multiple of 18 and 27 is 81. This number can be determined by finding the prime factors of each number, or by looking for the smallest multiple of 18 and 27 that is greater than both numbers. Knowing how to calculate the LCM of two numbers is a valuable skill that can be used to solve many different types of math problems.