What is 5 1/10 as a decimal?

Solution: 5 1/10 as a decimal is 5.1

Methods

First step – Making the fraction improper:

The first step to changing 5 1/10 into a decimal is to change it to an improper fraction. To do that, we need to multiply 5 by 10 and add its product to 1 in the numerator to get: 51/10. Now we will attempt to convert 51/10 to a decimal using one of the following methods:

Method 1 – Explanation using the division method:

One method to convert 51/10 to a decimal is by using the division method. Before we move ahead to the method, here is a quick recap on fractions: A fraction is a number representation that is broken down into two parts - the number on top is called the numerator, and the number on the bottom is called the denominator. To get a decimal using the division method, simply divide the numerator 51 by the denominator 10:

51 (numerator) ÷ 10 (denominator) = 5.1

And there you go! We got 5.1 as the answer when you convert 5 1/10 (or 51/10) to a decimal.

Method 2 – Explanation using the factors of 10 method:

In this method, we will convert the denominator into a power of 10 and then our fraction will be easier to calculate. If the denominator is a factor of a power of 10, like 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 25, 40, 50 and so on, then we can convert it into a power of 10.

In order to make 10 a power of 10, we need to multiply by 1 (10 * 1 = 10. Since we multiplied the denominator by 1, we also need to multiply the numerator by 1 too:

\frac{51 * 1}{10 * 1} = \frac{51}{10} = 5.1

And finally, you get 5.1 as your answer when you convert 5 1/10 (or 51/10) to a decimal.

Practice more problems!

All it takes to be better at something is some practice! Take a look at some more similar problems on converting fractions to decimals and give them a go:

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