A generator of a group is a single element for which : every group element is an integer power of . A group admitting such an element is a cyclic group. In additive notation, every element must be an integer multiple of .
Distinguish a single generator of a group from a generating set of a group. The Klein four-group needs two elements to generate it, although it has only four elements; no single element visits all four. A cyclic group need not have a unique generator of a group: has and , while the additive integers have and .
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