lowest common denominator

English

Pronunciation

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Noun

lowest common denominator (plural lowest common denominators)

1. (mathematics) The smallest positive integer which is a multiple of every denominator of several fractions.

   The lowest common denominator of ¹⁄₆ and ³⁄₁₀ is 30.

2. (figuratively) The simplest or base shared interest or characteristic among a group or collection of people etc.

   Reality TV really is appealing to the lowest common denominator in audiences.

   • 2026 February 13, Nathan Taylor Pemberton, “When Posting Becomes Its Own Style of Politics”, in The New York Times‎^[1], →ISSN, archived from the original on 17 February 2026:

     These days, on platforms like X, slopulism is a pejorative label often applied to posts by politicians and pundits alike, anyone who shares out lowest-common-denominator ideas designed to appeal to loyal political bases.

Synonyms

• least common denominator

Related terms

• lowest common multiple, least common multiple
• greatest common divisor

Translations

smallest multiple of several denominators

• Asturian: mínimu común denominaor m
• Azerbaijani: ən kiçik ortaq məxrəc, ən sadə ortaq məxrəc, ən aşağı ortaq məxrəc, ən aşağı ümumi məxrəc
• Bulgarian: най-малко общо кратно n (naj-malko obšto kratno)
• Catalan: mínim comú denominador m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 最小公分母 (zh) (zuìxiǎo gōngfēnmǔ)

• Czech: nejnižší společný jmenovatel m
• Danish: laveste fællesnævner c
• Finnish: pienin yhteinen nimittäjä
• French: plus petit dénominateur commun m, plus petit commun dénominateur m
• Galician: mínimo común denominador m, mínimo denominador común m
• Georgian: უმცირესი საერთო მნიშვნელი (umciresi saerto mnišvneli)
• German: kleinster gemeinsamer Nenner (de) m
• Greek: ελάχιστος κοινός παρονομαστής m (eláchistos koinós paronomastís)
• Hebrew: מכנה משותף מינימלי m (mekhané hameshutáf minimáli)
• Hungarian: legkisebb közös nevező
• Icelandic: minnsti samnefnari m
• Italian: minimo comune denominatore m
• Japanese: 最小公分母 (saishō kōbunbo)
• Korean: 최소공분모 (choesogongbunmo)
• Macedonian: најмал заеднички содржа́тел m (najmal zaednički sodržátel)
• Polish: najniższy wspólny mianownik m
• Portuguese: mínimo denominador comum m
• Romanian: cel mai mic numitor comun
• Russian: наиме́ньший о́бщий знамена́тель m (naiménʹšij óbščij znamenátelʹ)
• Spanish: mínimo común denominador m, mínimo denominador común m
• Swedish: minsta gemensamma nämnare (sv)
• Tagalog: pinakamaliit na lahatang pamahagi
• Turkish: en küçük ortak kat, ortak katların en küçüğü (tr)
• Vietnamese: mẫu chung nhỏ nhất, mẫu số chung nhỏ nhất

most simple shared interest

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 最低共識 / 最低共识, 共同點 / 共同点 (zh) (gòngtóngdiǎn)

• Danish: laveste fællesnævner c
• Finnish: pienin yhteinen nimittäjä
• Hebrew: הגורם המשותף הנמוך ביותר m (hagorém hameshutáf hanamúkh beyotér)
• Japanese: 最小公倍数 (ja) (saishō kōbaisū)
• Korean: 최소공배수 (choesogongbaesu)
• Macedonian: најмал заеднички содржа́тел m (najmal zaednički sodržátel)
• Polish: najniższy wspólny mianownik m
• Spanish: mínimo común denominador m
• Swedish: minsta gemensamma nämnare (sv) c

See also

• play to the gallery
• tittytainment

Further reading

• lowest common denominator on Wikipedia.Wikipedia