Solution: The LCM of 53 and 37 is 1961
Methods
How to find the LCM of 53 and 37 using Prime Factorization
One way to find the LCM of 53 and 37 is to start by comparing the prime factorization of each number. To find the prime factorization, you can follow the instructions for each number here:
What are the Factors of 53?
What are the Factors of 37?
Here is the prime factorization of 53:
5
3
1
53^1
5 3 1
And this is the prime factorization of 37:
3
7
1
37^1
3 7 1
When you compare the prime factorization of these two numbers, you want to look for the highest power that each prime factor is raised to. In this case, there are these prime factors to consider: 53, 37
3
7
1
×
5
3
1
=
1961
37^1 × 53^1 = 1961
3 7 1 × 5 3 1 = 1961
Through this we see that the LCM of 53 and 37 is 1961.
How to Find the LCM of 53 and 37 by Listing Common Multiples
The first step to this method of finding the Least Common Multiple of 53 and 37 is to begin to list a few multiples for each number. If you need a refresher on how to find the multiples of these numbers, you can see the walkthroughs in the links below for each number.
Let’s take a look at the multiples for each of these numbers, 53 and 37:
What are the Multiples of 53?
What are the Multiples of 37?
Let’s take a look at the first 10 multiples for each of these numbers, 53 and 37:
First 10 Multiples of 53: 53, 106, 159, 212, 265, 318, 371, 424, 477, 530
First 10 Multiples of 37: 37, 74, 111, 148, 185, 222, 259, 296, 333, 370
You can continue to list out the multiples of these numbers as long as needed to find a match. Once you do find a match, or several matches, the smallest of these matches would be the Least Common Multiple. For instance, the first matching multiple(s) of 53 and 37 are 1961, 3922, 5883. Because 1961 is the smallest, it is the least common multiple.
The LCM of 53 and 37 is 1961.
Find the LCM of Other Number Pairs
Want more practice? Try some of these other LCM problems:
What is the LCM of 17 and 107?
What is the LCM of 28 and 82?
What is the LCM of 8 and 4?
What is the LCM of 120 and 38?
What is the LCM of 109 and 84?