5/27/22, 3:20 AM Dividing by a Decimal

Division and Percentages:

Dividing by a Decimal
Dividing by a decimal can look difficult, but actually there's only one simple step we need to do
before we can divide by a decimal number. The following video will explain and show a couple of
examples:

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Video Source (05:18 mins) | Transcript

Ways to show division

The division symbol (÷) is not the only way to show division. As you learned earlier in this
lesson in the mini-lesson on how to use Excel as a calculator, division can be symbolized
with a slash (/) as well. You may see this on some calculators as well. We will often use the /
symbol within this course to represent division.

Remember, to divide by a decimal, multiply both numbers by the power of 10 that will make the
divisor (the number we’re dividing by. Ex: 5 ÷ 2.5, the divisor is 2.5) an integer. Then the division
process is exactly the same as when all the numbers were integers.

Examples:

5 ÷ 2.5 = ?

1. We multiply both numbers by 10 to make it 50 ÷ 25

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5/27/22, 3:20 AM Dividing by a Decimal

88.2365 ÷ 3.69

1. We multiply both numbers by 100, moving the decimal of the divisor over two spaces so it is
an integer.
2. This makes the question 8823.65 ÷ 369.
3. We just need the divisor no longer to have a decimal. The dividend can still have a decimal.

Additional Resources

Khan Academy: Dividing Decimals (06:43 mins, Transcript)

Practice Problems

Evaluate the following expression:

1. 54 ÷ 1.2 = ?
2. 69 ÷ 2.4 = ?
3. 8.4 ÷ 6.5 = ? (Round your answer to the nearest hundredth.)
4. 24.7 ÷ 3.9 = ? (Round your answer to the nearest hundredth.)
5. 62.5 ÷ 1.75 = ? (Round your answer to the nearest hundredth.)
6. 25 ÷ 4.35 = ? (Round your answer to the nearest hundredth.)

View Solutions

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