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Last updated on March 17th, 2025
It is a simple question on decimal conversion. Firstly, we have to learn fractions and decimals. A fraction represents a part of the whole. It has two parts: the numerator (the number on the top), here -3, represents how many parts out of the whole. The denominator (the number below) shows how many parts make the whole, here it is 7. A decimal is a way to represent a 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.
-3/7 in decimals can be written as -0.428571…. It is a recurring decimal, indicating it will repeat a sequence of digits infinitely.
To convert -3/7 into a decimal, we will use the division method. Since 3 is smaller than 7, we will use the decimal method, which will give us -0.428571. Let's see the step-by-step breakdown of the process:
Step 1: Identify the numerator and denominator because the numerator (-3) will be taken as the dividend and the denominator (7) will be the divisor.
Step 2: As 3 is smaller than 7, it can't be divided. Here, we will use decimals. We will add 0 to the dividend, which will make it 30, and add a decimal point in the quotient place.
Step 3: Now that it is 30, we can divide it by 7. Let's see how many times 7 fits into 30.
Step 4: 30 is not a multiple of 7, so we will look for the nearest number that is 7 × 4 = 28. We will write 4 in the quotient place and subtract 28 from 30, giving us 2.
Step 5: Bring down another 0 in the dividend place, making it 20, and then repeat the division process. The division process continues, and we don't get the remainder as 0. This process is called a recurring decimal.
The answer for -3/7 as a decimal will be -0.428571….