18/42 in simplest form
Understand the Problem
The question is asking to simplify the fraction 18/42 to its lowest terms. This involves finding the greatest common divisor (GCD) of the numerator and denominator and dividing both by that number.
Answer
$\frac{3}{7}$
Answer for screen readers
The simplified form of the fraction is $\frac{3}{7}$.
Steps to Solve
- Find the GCD of 18 and 42
To simplify the fraction $\frac{18}{42}$, we first need to find the greatest common divisor (GCD) of 18 and 42.
The factors of 18 are: 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 18
The factors of 42 are: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 14, 21, 42
The largest factor they share is 6, so the GCD is 6.
- Divide both the numerator and denominator by the GCD
Now, we can divide the numerator and denominator by the GCD we found.
$$ \frac{18 \div 6}{42 \div 6} $$
This simplifies to
$$ \frac{3}{7} $$
- Final simplified fraction
The fraction $\frac{18}{42}$ is now simplified to $\frac{3}{7}$.
The simplified form of the fraction is $\frac{3}{7}$.
More Information
When simplifying fractions, finding the GCD is essential because it helps us reduce the fraction to its simplest form. This ensures the fraction is expressed with the smallest possible numerator and denominator.
Tips
- Forgetting to find the GCD before simplifying.
- Incorrectly dividing the numerator and denominator.
- Not checking if the fraction is already in its simplest form.
