Multiplying Fractions

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Multiplying Fractions

Multiplying fractions is straightforward: you simply multiply the numerators together to get the new numerator, and multiply the denominators together to get the new denominator. Or, “multiply the tops and multiply the bottoms” for short.

Example 1

\begin{aligned}\frac{1}{2}\times \frac{1}{2}=\frac{1\times1}{2\times2}=\frac{1}{4}\end{aligned}

Example 2

\begin{aligned}\frac{2}{3}\times \frac{2}{3}=\frac{2\times 2}{3\times 3}=\frac{4}{9}\end{aligned}

 

And as always, where it is possible to do so you must simplify fractions as in the following example:

 

Example 3

\begin{aligned}\frac{3}{4}\times \frac{6}{8}=\frac{3\times 6}{4\times 8}=\frac{18}{32}\end{aligned}

 

Now we simplify \frac{18}{32} to get the final answer:

 

\begin{aligned}\frac{18}{32}=\frac{\sout2\times 9}{\sout2\times 16}=\frac{9}{16}\end{aligned}

 

Key Outcomes

To multiply fractions together, multiply the tops (numerators) and multiply the bottoms (denominators). Always simplify where possible.

SQA Past Paper Questions:

Multiplying Fractions

Click the links below to download SQA past paper questions that are directly relevant to Multiplying Fractions:

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