Why Turn Fraction Upside Down?

Well ... what Does a Fraction Do?

A fraction says to:
multiply by the top number divide by the bottom number

Example: 3/4 means to cut into 4 pieces, and then take 3 of those. So you: divide by 4 multiply by 3

Example: ³/₄ of 20 is:

20 divided by 4, then times 3 = (20/4) × 3 = 5 × 3 = 15

Or you could multiply before dividing:

20 times 3, then divide by 4 = (20 × 3) / 4 = 60/4 = 15

Either way gets the same result

 Dividing

But when you DIVIDE by a fraction, you are asked to do the opposite of multiply ...

So you:

• divide by the top number
• multiply by the bottom number

Example: dividing by ⁵/₂ is the same as multiplying by ²/₅

Because:

Dividing by 5, then Multiplying by 2

is the same as

Multiplying by 2, then Dividing by 5

So instead of dividing by a fraction, it is easier to turn that fraction upside down, then do a multiply.