Last updated on May 29th, 2025
It is a simple question on decimal conversion. Firstly, we have to learn fractions and decimals. A fraction represents a part from the whole. It has two parts, numerator (number on the top) and denominator (number below). A decimal is a way to represent the number that is not whole, using a (.) or a decimal to separate the whole part from the fractional part. The numbers to the left of the decimal point represent the whole, and those to the right represent the fractional part.
8 21/40 in decimals can be written as 8.525. It is a terminating decimal.
To convert 8 21/40 to a decimal, we will first convert the fractional part, 21/40, to a decimal. Let's see the step-by-step breakdown of the process:
Step 1: Identify the numerator and denominator. Here, the numerator (21) will be taken as the dividend and the denominator (40) will be the divisor.
Step 2: Divide 21 by 40. Since 21 is smaller than 40, we place a decimal point and add a zero to the dividend, making it 210.
Step 3: Determine how many times 40 fits into 210. The closest multiple is 40 × 5 = 200.
Step 4: Write 5 in the quotient place and subtract 200 from 210, giving a remainder of 10.
Step 5: Bring down another 0 to make it 100, divide by 40, and find that 40 goes into 100 two times (40 × 2 = 80).
Step 6: Write 2 in the quotient and subtract 80 from 100, leaving a remainder of 20.
Step 7: Bring down another 0 to make it 200, and divide by 40 to get 5 (40 × 5 = 200), leaving no remainder.
The fractional part 21/40 equals 0.525, so 8 21/40 equals 8.525 as a decimal.