Word: factor

n

• (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; "genes were formerly called factors"
• a businessman who buys or sells for another in exchange for a commission
• an abstract part of something; "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 s
• an independent variable in statistics
• any of the numbers (or symbols) that form a product when multiplied together
• anything that contributes causally to a result; "a number of factors determined the outcome"
• one of two or more integers that can be exactly divided into another integer; "what are the 4 factors of 6?"

v

• resolve into factors; "a quantum computer can factor the number 15"

PROTOTYPE PAGE, Source: WordNet