prime
part of speech
adjective (prime); noun (prime — the best time); verb (prime, primes, primed, priming)
meaning for a pupil
1) In maths, a prime number is a whole number greater than 1 that can only be divided exactly by 1 and itself. tree →
2) Prime means main or most important. tree →
3) Prime means of the best quality. tree →
4) Someone's prime is the time when they are strongest or best. tree →
5) To prime something means to get it ready, for example to put a first coat on wood before painting. tree →
sense in the lessons
Maths: the prime numbers start 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29; 2 is the only even prime; 1 is not prime. A number with more factors is composite. Every whole number above 1 is a prime or can be made by multiplying primes (prime factors). Government: the Prime Minister leads the government in the UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Phrases: prime number, prime factor, prime minister, prime example, in his prime.
examples
- 7 is a prime number because only 1 and 7 divide it. tree →
- Is 9 prime? No, 3 × 3 = 9. tree →
- The prime factors of 12 are 2, 2 and 3. tree →
- The Prime Minister spoke on the news. tree →
- This is a prime example of good teamwork. tree →
- The athlete was in her prime. tree →
- Prime the wall before you paint it. tree →
- 2 is the only even prime number. tree →
- The Witch-Queen is put to death, and Nikita lives happily as the King's Prime Minister. tree →
note
Maths trap: 1 is NOT a prime number (it has only one factor). 2 IS prime even though it is even. To test if a number is prime, try dividing by the primes smaller than it; if none divide exactly, it is prime. «Prime» in «Prime Minister» means first or chief.
In the corpora
- "Past his prime" means he is no longer young or at his best.
- "Getting on", "no spring chicken" and "past his prime" mean old, not dead.
- In the UK you do not vote for the prime minister directly.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «prime» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.