For example, in the fraction ½, the 1 is the numerator and 2 is the denominator. You can also write fractions on a single line, like 4/5. The number on the left is always the numerator and the number on the right is the denominator.
For example, if you want to make an equivalent fraction to 3/5, you can multiply both numbers by 2 to make the fraction 6/10. In a real-world example, if you have 2 equal slices of pizza and you cut one of them in half, the two halves are still the same amount as the other full slice.
For example, if you have the fraction 2/8, both the numerator and denominator are divisible by 2. Divide each number by 2 to get 2/8 = 1/4.
For example, if you want to simplify 7/3, divide 7 by 3 to get the answer 2 with a remainder of 1. Your new mixed number will look like 2 ⅓.
For example, if you want to convert 5 ¾ to an improper fraction, multiply 5 x 4 = 20. Add 20 to the numerator to get the fraction 23/4.
For example, if you wanted to solve 3/5 + 1/5, rewrite the equation as (3+1)/5 = 4/5. If you want to solve 5/6 - 2/6, write it as (5-2)/6 = 3/6. Both the numerator and denominator are divisible by 3, so you can simplify the fraction to 1/2. If you have mixed numbers, remember to change them to improper fractions first. For example, if you want to solve 2 ⅓ + 1 ⅓, change the mixed numbers so the problem reads 7/3 + 4/3. Rewrite the equation like (7 + 4)/3 = 11/3. Then convert it back to a mixed number, which would be 3 ⅔.
For example, if you want to solve 1/6 + 2/4, list the multiples of 6 and 4. Multiples of 6: 0, 6, 12, 18… Multiples of 4: 0, 4, 8, 12, 16… The least common multiple of 6 and 4 is 12.
In the example 1/6 + 2/4, multiply the numerator and denominator of 1/6 by 2 to get 2/12. Then multiply both numbers of 2/4 by 3 to equal 6/12. Rewrite the equation as 2/12 + 6/12.
For example, rewrite 2/12 +6/12 as (2+6)/12 = 8/12. Simplify your answer by dividing the numerator and denominator by 4 to get a final answer of ⅔.
For example, if you want to solve 4/5 x 1/2, multiply the numerators for 4 x 1 = 4. Then multiply the denominators for 5 x 2 = 10. Write the new fraction 4/10 and simplify it by dividing the numerator and denominator by 2 to get the final answer of 2/5. As another example, the problem 2 ½ x 3 ½ = 5/2 x 7/2 = (5 x 7)/(2 x 2) = 35/4 = 8 ¾.
For example, the reciprocal of 3/8 is 8/3. Convert a mixed number into an improper fraction before taking the reciprocal. For example, 2 ⅓ converts to 7/3 and the reciprocal is 3/7.
For example, if your original problem was 3/8 ÷ 4/5, first find the reciprocal of 4/5, which is 5/4. Rewrite your problem as multiplication with the reciprocal for 3/8 x 5/4. Multiply the numerators for 3 x 5 = 15. Multiply the denominators for 8 x 4 = 32. Write the new fraction 15/32.
