To reduce a fraction to the lowest terms equivalent: divide the numerator and denominator by their greatest common factor, GCF
To calculate the greatest common factor, GCF:
- 1. Factor the numerator and the denominator (into prime factors), build their prime factorizations.
- 2. Multiply all their common prime factors, taken by the lowest exponents.
1. Factor the numerator and the denominator:
To factor a number (into prime factors) - or, in other words, to break it down to prime factors - or, in other words, to build its prime factorization: find the prime numbers that multiply together to get that number.
The prime factorizations:
Written with exponents:
88 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 11 = 23 × 11
88 is a composite number.
Written with exponents:
500,000,096 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 × 67 × 101 × 2,309 = 25 × 67 × 101 × 2,309
500,000,096 is a composite number.
88/500,000,096 =
(88 ÷ 8) / (500,000,096 ÷ 8) =
11/62,500,012
Yet another method to reduce the fraction
To reduce a fraction without calculating the GCF: factor its numerator and denominator, then all the common prime factors are easily identified and crossed out.
88/500,000,096 =
(23 × 11)/(25 × 67 × 101 × 2,309) =
((23 × 11) ÷ 23) / ((25 × 67 × 101 × 2,309) ÷ 23) =
11/(22 × 67 × 101 × 2,309) =
11/62,500,012
As a decimal number:
Simply divide the numerator by the denominator, without a remainder, as shown below:
11/62,500,012 =
11 ÷ 62,500,012 =
0.000000176 ≈
0