-12/5 as a Decimal

Professor Greenline Explaining Math Concepts

Foundation

Intermediate

Advance Topics

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: numerator (number on the top) here, -12 represents how many parts out of the whole. The denominator (number below) shows how many parts make the whole; here it is 5. 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.

What is -12/5 as a decimal?

$-12/5 as a decimal$

Answer

-12/5 in decimals can be written as -2.4. It is a terminating decimal, meaning it does not repeat infinitely.

Explanation

To get -12/5 in decimal, we will use the division method. Here, as -12 is larger than 5 in absolute value, we can directly divide to get the decimal form. Let's see the step-by-step breakdown of the process.

Step 1: Identify the numerator and denominator because the numerator (-12) will be taken as the dividend, and the denominator (5) will be taken as the divisor.

Step 2: Divide 12 by 5 to get the whole number part. 5 goes into 12 two times, which gives us a whole number part of 2.

Step 3: The remainder after dividing 12 by 5 is 2.

Step 4: Bring down a 0 to the remainder, making it 20. Divide 20 by 5 to get 4.

Step 5: Since there is no remainder now, the process ends.

Thus, -12/5 as a decimal is -2.4.

Important Glossaries for -12/5 as a decimal

Fraction: A numerical quantity that is not a whole number, representing a part of a whole.
Decimal: A number that uses the base ten and includes a decimal point to separate the whole part from the fractional part.
Numerator: The top part of a fraction, indicating how many parts of the whole are being considered, with sign indicating direction.
Denominator: The bottom part of a fraction, showing how many parts make up a whole.
Terminating Decimal: A decimal that ends and does not repeat infinitely.