How to Determine Unit Fractions
Unit fractions always have "1" in the numerator. The unit fraction 1/n corresponds to a decimal value after dividing n into 1. To determine a unit fraction of a number, convert the number in question to a fraction, then perform fraction multiplication and simplify the resulting fraction.
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Instructions
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Rewrite the number as an improper fraction if it is written as a decimal or mixed fraction. Convert a decimal to an improper fraction by moving the decimal place all the way to the right and dividing by a 1 with the same number of zeros at the end as the number of decimal places you moved. Convert a mixed fraction by multiplying the whole number by the denominator of the fraction and adding the numerator to get the new numerator. (The denominator remains the same.)
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Multiply the denominator of the unit fraction by the denominator of the other number. For example, if you are calculating 1/6 of 40/3, you would multiply the denominator of the unit fraction, 6, by the denominator 3 to get 18. If the other number is a whole number (like 4 or -10), its denominator would be equal to one.
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Write the numerator of the other number as the numerator of the new fraction. In the example, the numerator of the new fraction is 40, so the new fraction is 40/18.
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Simplify the fraction by finding common factors between the numerator and denominator and canceling them out. In the example, 40 and 18 have a common factor of 2, so the simplified fraction is 20/9 (40 divided by 2 over 18 divided by 2).
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Perform long division to rewrite the fraction as a decimal if you are asked to write the answer in decimal form. In the example, 9 goes into 20 twice, so the resulting decimal is 2.22. (The decimal 2 is repeating.)
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References
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