To determine whether 87 is a composite or prime number, we first need to understand what these terms mean. A prime number is defined as a natural number greater than 1 that has no positive divisors other than 1 and itself. In contrast, a composite number is a natural number that has more than two positive divisors.
Now, let’s analyze the number 87. If we check for divisibility, we see that 87 can be divided by 1, 3, 29, and 87. The presence of divisors other than 1 and 87 itself indicates that 87 is not a prime number, as it has additional factors—namely 3 and 29.
Since 87 has multiple divisors, we can conclude that it is a composite number. Thus, the answer to the question is that 87 is a composite number.