3 Times Table — Tricks & Examples
3 Times Table — Tricks & Examples
TL;DR
The 3 times table is multiplying 3 by each whole number, giving the multiples of 3 — 3×10=30 and 3×20=60 at the two anchor points. This page lays out the full chart to ×20, the table in words, the digit-sum check, the multiples of 3, solved examples, and practice questions with answers.
Quick Answer:
- Result: 3×1=3 through 3×10=30
- Notation: 3×n, read "three times n"
- Method shown: Repeated addition, skip-counting, digit-sum check
- Pattern: Last digits cycle 3, 6, 9, 2, 5, 8, 1, 4, 7, 0
- Extended: continues 3×11=33 … 3×20=60
Multiplication Table of 3
The full 3 times table sits in two short blocks: the core facts up to ten, then the extension to twenty.
Table of 3 up to 10
| Multiplication | Product |
|---|---|
| 3×1 | 3 |
| 3×2 | 6 |
| 3×3 | 9 |
| 3×4 | 12 |
| 3×5 | 15 |
| 3×6 | 18 |
| 3×7 | 21 |
| 3×8 | 24 |
| 3×9 | 27 |
| 3×10 | 30 |
Table of 3 up to 20
| Multiplication | Product |
|---|---|
| 3×11 | 33 |
| 3×12 | 36 |
| 3×13 | 39 |
| 3×14 | 42 |
| 3×15 | 45 |
| 3×16 | 48 |
| 3×17 | 51 |
| 3×18 | 54 |
| 3×19 | 57 |
| 3×20 | 60 |
Table of 3 in Words
Said aloud, the table reads:
- One times 3 is 3
- Two times 3 is 6
- Three times 3 is 9
- Four times 3 is 12
- Five times 3 is 15
- Six times 3 is 18
- Seven times 3 is 21
- Eight times 3 is 24
- Nine times 3 is 27
- Ten times 3 is 30
What Is The 3 Times Table?
The 3 times table is what you get by multiplying 3 by each whole number, and multiplying by 3 is repeated addition of 3. Writing 3×4 is shorthand for adding 3 four times, and the answer builds one step at a time:
3,;3+3=6,;3+3+3=9,;3+3+3+3=12.
Said another way, 3×4 is "four groups of three" — picture four bags with three marbles each, and you count twelve.
Multiples of 3
The products in the table are the multiples of 3. The first twelve are:
3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30, 33, 36.
How to Learn the 3 Times Table (Patterns, Not Memorizing)
- The 3s are the 2s plus one more group.
- The digits of every product add to a multiple of 3.
- Skip-count in threes.
- Build any fact from its neighbour.
The point is not to store ten answers but to understand the patterns that produce them.
How to Read and Use the 3 Times Table
Read a row left to right: in 3×7, the 3 is the number you are counting in, the 7 is how many groups, and 21 is the total. To learn it, chant the products in order while skip-counting, then test yourself out of order.
Where the 3 Times Table Appears
Threes show up wherever things come in trios — a triangle has 3 sides, a traffic light has 3 colours.
Solved Examples
Example 1
Find 3×4 using repeated addition. 3×4=3+3+3+3=12.
Example 2
A tricycle has 3 wheels. How many wheels on 8 tricycles? 3×8=24.
Example 3
What is 3×13? 3×13=39.
Example 4
Check whether 42 is in the 3 times table. Yes, 42=3×14.
Example 5
Fill in the missing factor: 3×□=27. The missing factor is 9.
Common Mistakes with the 3 Times Table
Mistake 1: Drifting off the multiples mid-count
Mistake 2: Confusing 3× with 2×
Practice Questions
- 3×5=□
- 3×7=□
- 3×11=□
- Fill in the missing factor: 3×□=18.
- A stool has 3 legs. How many legs on 6 stools?
- Use the digit-sum check: is 48 a multiple of 3?
- 3×15=□
- Which is larger, 3×9 or 2×12?
Answers: 1. 15 · 2. 21 · 3. 33 · 4. 6 · 5. 18 legs · 6. Yes · 7. 45 · 8. 3×9 is larger than 2×12.