LCM
Abbreviation with 3 meanings
| Stands for | Least common multiple |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 3 |
| Categories | Units & Measurements, Sports, Business & Finance |
LCM has three meanings. The most common are Least common multiple (math) and Long course meters (other sports); it can also stand for Lower of cost or market.
Meanings of LCM at a glance
| # | LCM stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Least common multiple | Units & Measurements › Math |
| 2 | Long course meters | Sports › Other Sports |
| 3 | Lower of cost or market | Business & Finance › Accounting |
1. Least common multiple
Units & Measurements · Math Abbreviations
The smallest positive number that is a multiple of each of two or more integers: lcm(4, 6) = 12. It is used to add fractions with different denominators and to work out when repeating events coincide.
Example: Buses every 12 and 18 minutes meet again after LCM(12, 18) = 36 minutes.
For two numbers, LCM = a × b ÷ GCD(a, b), so it is usually calculated from the GCD. British schools sometimes say lowest common multiple. Python has provided math.lcm since version 3.9. The least common denominator of a set of fractions is the LCM of their denominators.
2. Long course meters
Sports · Other Sports Abbreviations
Swimming in a 50-meter pool, the format used at the Olympics and long-course World Championships. Times are labeled LCM to distinguish them from short-course swims.
Example: Her 2:08 LCM converts to roughly 1:55 in a yards pool.
World records are kept separately for long course and short course (25-meter, SCM) pools. Short-course times are faster because of extra turns and push-offs. In math LCM means least common multiple.
3. Lower of cost or market
Business & Finance · Accounting Abbreviations
US inventory valuation rule requiring inventory to be reported at the lower of historical cost or market value, where market is replacement cost bounded by a ceiling (net realizable value) and a floor (NRV minus a normal profit margin). It ensures losses are recognized when inventory loses value.
Example: Because LIFO inventory still follows LCM, the company compared replacement costs with its ceiling and floor.
Since ASU 2015-11, LCM applies only to inventory measured using LIFO or the retail inventory method; other US inventory uses the lower of cost and net realizable value. Sometimes written LOCOM. In mathematics, LCM means least common multiple, the more familiar meaning.
Related abbreviations
More math abbreviations
- K – Thousand
- ker – Kernel
- lb – Binary logarithm
- LCD – Least common denominator
- lg – Logarithm (base 10 or base 2)
- LHS – Left-hand side
- lim – Limit
- ln – Natural logarithm
See all 91 math abbreviations →