What is the meaning of factor?

noun

• Anything that contributes causally to a result.
  • usage: "a number of factors determined the outcome"
• An abstract part of something.
  • usage: "jealousy was a component of his character"; "two constituents of a musical composition are melody and harmony"; "the grammatical elements of a sentence"; "a key factor in her success"; "humor: an effective ingredient of a speech"
  • synonyms: component, constituent, element, ingredient
• One of two or more integers that can be exactly divided into another integer.
  • usage: "what are the 4 factors of 6"
  • synonyms: divisor
• A businessman who buys or sells for another in exchange for a commission.
  • synonyms: agent, broker
• Any of the numbers (or symbols) that form a product when multiplied together.
• An independent variable in statistics.
• Genetics) a segment of DNA that is involved in producing a polypeptide chain; it can include regions preceding and following the coding DNA as well as introns between the exons; it is considered a unit of heredity. (
  • usage: "genes were formerly called factors"
  • synonyms: gene, cistron

verb

• Resolve into factors.
  • usage: "a quantum computer can factor the number 15"
  • synonyms: factor in, factor out
• Be a contributing factor.
  • usage: "make things factor into a company's profitability"
• Consider as relevant when making a decision.
  • usage: "You must factor in the recent developments"
  • synonyms: factor in, factor out