To divide a whole number by a unit fraction, we multiply the whole number by the fraction's denominator.
For example,
Now, note the following:
is the reciprocal of
So, to calculate we multiplied by the reciprocal of
Thinking about division in terms of reciprocals will help us later when we want to divide whole numbers by non-unit fractions.
Divide
Dividing a whole number by a fraction is equivalent to multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
The reciprocal of is
So, we have
$3 \div \dfrac 1 {8}=$
a
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$\dfrac {25} {8}$ |
b
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$11$ |
c
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$24$ |
d
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$\dfrac 3 {8}$ |
e
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$32$ |
Expressed as a whole number, $4 \div \dfrac{1}{11} =$
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When dividing a whole number by a non-unit fraction, we can still use the same technique of multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
The only difference is that, in order to perform the multiplication, we must convert the whole number into an improper fraction.
To illustrate, let's compute
First, we write as an improper fraction:
Next, we note that the reciprocal of is
So, we have
Now, we multiply our fractions.
Calculate the value of expressing the result as a mixed number.
Dividing a whole number by a fraction is equivalent to multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
First, we write as an improper fraction:
Next, we note that the reciprocal of is
So, we have
Now, we multiply our fractions.
Finally, we write the resulting improper fraction as a mixed number:
$5\div \dfrac 2 3=$
a
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$\dfrac{15}{2}$ |
b
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$\dfrac{10}{3}$ |
c
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$\dfrac{15}{3}$ |
d
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$\dfrac{5}{2}$ |
e
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$\dfrac{10}{2}$ |
Expressed as a mixed number in its lowest terms, $2 \div \dfrac{5}{9} =$
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Let's find the value of
Dividing a whole number by a fraction is equivalent to multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
First, we write as an improper fraction:
Next, we note that the reciprocal of is
So, we have
Now, we multiply our fractions.
Finally, we simplify:
Sometimes, we may wish to use a fraction multiplication strategy to simplify the problem before multiplying the fractions. Let's see an example.
Divide
Dividing a whole number by a fraction is equivalent to multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
First, we write as an improper fraction:
Next, we note that the reciprocal of is
So, we have
Now, we multiply our fractions. Note that we can simplify the process by swapping the denominators first.
Expressed as a whole number, $4 \div \dfrac{4}{5} =$
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Expressed as a whole number, $4 \div \dfrac 2 7=$
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e
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Calculate the value of expressing the result as a mixed number.
Dividing a whole number by a fraction is equivalent to multiplying the whole number by the reciprocal of the fraction.
First, we write as an improper fraction:
Next, we note that the reciprocal of is
So, we have
Now, we multiply our fractions. Note that we can simplify the process by swapping the denominators first.
Finally, we convert our result to a mixed number:
Expressed as an improper fraction in its lowest terms, $6 \div \dfrac{8}{11} =$
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Expressed as an mixed number in its lowest terms, $2\div \dfrac 6 {7}=$
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