# Why can't C(n,k) have a prime factor that is larger than n?

let C be the choose function, defined as:

$C(n,k)=\frac{n!}{k!(n-k)!)}$

Why can't C(n,k) have a prime factor larger than n?

I don't know much about the relationship between the binomial coefficient and prime factors and was wondering if I could just be pointed in the right direction.

Take C(47,11) for example. It is equal to 17417133617. To me this seems to be an arbitrary large number. How can I tell that this number, from the information that it is C(47,11), has no prime factor larger than 47?

The reason I have this question is that I observed this trait after solving a problem (I verified it with several testcases by writing a short Python program that finds all the prime factors of a number), but have been unable to prove it or explain why.

Since $\binom{n}{k}=\frac{n!}{k!(n-k)!}$, we know that any prime $p$ that divides $\binom nk$ also divides $n!$ (since dividing by integers can't add factors). Because $n!$ contains only factors $\leq n$, it cannot have a prime factor greater than $n$.