Last updated on June 18th, 2025
Rolling a die is a fundamental action in games like Snake and Ladder, Roll and Count, Bunny Hope, Ludo, etc. It is when a six-sided fair cube is tossed to generate a random outcome. Each face has an equal chance of landing up. Rolling a die teaches the probability of rolling a fair dice, probability of a number on dice, or to understand the possible outcomes when two dice are rolled. Let us now see more about rolling a die and how it is calculated.
A die is a small cube, where each face is marked with a number (1-6). Rolling a die refers to tossing this small cube to produce a random outcome between the numbers 1 to 6. Each side of the die cube have equal probability of landing face-up while tossing. This process of rolling a die is widely used in board games, gambling, and statistical experiments to model uncertainty and chance.
For example, the table below shows the number of times or occurrences of outcomes when a die is rolled 100 times:
Outcome | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
Number of Occurrences | 20 | 5 | 10 | 15 |
25 |
25 |
Relative Occurrence |
1/5 |
5/100 |
1/10 |
3/20 |
1/4 |
1/4 |
The sum of relative occurrence should be equal to 1.
1/5 + 5/100 + 1/10 +3/20 + 1/4 + 1/4 = 1
Because the value of probability should be between 0 and 1.
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When rolling a die, we get any number from 1 to 6. When rolling a single die, the probability of getting a single number is ⅙. We use the following formula to calculate the probability of rolling a die:
Probability = Number of Favorable Outcomes/(Total Number of Outcomes)
If we roll 2 dice, we get the following outcomes:
{(1, 1), (1, 2), (1, 3), (1, 4), (1, 5), (1, 6)
(2, 1), (2, 2), (2, 3), (2, 4), (2, 5), (2, 6)
(3, 1), (3, 2), (3, 3), (3, 4), (3, 5), (3, 6)
(4, 1), (4, 2), (4, 3), (4, 4), (4, 5), (4, 6)
(5, 1), (5, 2), (5, 3), (5, 4), (5, 5), (5, 6)
(6, 1), (6, 2), (6, 3), (6, 4), (6, 5), (6, 6)}
The above are all the possible outcomes that have equal probability.
For example, if you throw two dice at the same time. The probability of getting 1 and 5 are 2/36 or 1/18.
What is the probability of rolling a 4 on a fair die?
The probability of rolling a 4 on a fair die is 1/6.
Total Outcomes:
A fair die has 6 sides, that is, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
Favorable Outcome:
Only one outcome is a 4.
Probability Calculation:
P(4) = Number of favorable outcomes/Total outcomes
= 1/6.
What is the probability of rolling an even number?
The probability of rolling an even number is 1/2.
Even numbers on a die: {2, 4, 6}.
Total Even Outcomes: 3 outcomes.
Probability Calculation:
P (Even) = Number of favorable outcomes/Total outcomes
= 3/6 = 1/2.
What is the probability of rolling a number less than 4?
The probability of rolling a number less than 4 is 1/2.
In a die, the numbers less than 4 are 1, 2, and 3.
So the total Favorable Outcomes: 3 outcomes.
Probability Calculation:
P(< 4) = Number of favorable outcomes/Total outcomes
= 3/6 = 1/2.
What is the probability of rolling a prime number?
The probability of rolling a prime number is 1/2.
Prime Numbers on a Die:
The primes between 1 and 6 are {2, 3, 5}.
Total Favorable Outcomes: 3 outcomes
Probability Calculation:
P (Prime) = Number of favorable outcomes/Total outcomes
= 3/6 = 1/2.
What is the probability of rolling a composite number?
The probability of rolling a composite number is 1/3.
Composite number on a Die:
Numbers that have factors other than 1 and themselves.
Composite numbers are: {4, 6}.
Total Favorable Outcomes: 2 outcomes.
Probability Calculation:
P (Composite) = 2/6 = 1/3.
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Jaipreet Kour Wazir is a data wizard with over 5 years of expertise in simplifying complex data concepts. From crunching numbers to crafting insightful visualizations, she turns raw data into compelling stories. Her journey from analytics to education ref
: She compares datasets to puzzle games—the more you play with them, the clearer the picture becomes!