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Last updated on March 3rd, 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 (number on the top) here, 21, represents how many parts out of the whole. The denominator (number below) shows how many parts make the whole, here it is 4. 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 that to the right represents the fractional part.
21/4 in decimals can be written as 5.25. This is a terminating decimal since the division ends after a few steps.
To get 21/4 in decimal, we will use the division method. Here, 21 is larger than 4, so we can divide directly. Let's see the step-by-step breakdown of the process:
Step 1: Identify the numerator and denominator; the numerator (21) will be taken as the dividend and the denominator (4) will be taken as the divisor.
Step 2: Divide 21 by 4. Since 21 is more than 4, we can proceed with the division directly.
Step 3: Determine how many times 4 can go into 21. 4 × 5 = 20 is the closest multiple of 4 that is less than 21.
Step 4: Write 5 in the quotient place. Subtract 20 from 21, which gives 1.
Step 5: Bring down a 0, making it 10. Divide 10 by 4. The closest multiple is 4 × 2 = 8. Write 2 in the quotient place, and subtract 8 from 10, giving 2.
Step 6: Bring down another 0, making it 20. Divide 20 by 4, which gives exactly 5. The division process ends here with no remainder, indicating a terminating decimal.
The answer for 21/4 as a decimal is 5.25.