Which is larger and why? 1/18 or 1/12

Answer: 1/12

Step-by-step explanation: Notice that the fractions that we're comparing in this problem have different denominators. When fractions have different denominators, they're called unlike fractions.

To compare unlike fractions, our first task is to get a common denominator. The common denominator of 18 and 12 will be the least common multiple of 18 and 12 or 36.

To get a 36 in the denominator of 1/18, we multiply the numerator and the denominator by 2 which gives us 2/36.

To get a 36 in the denominator of 1/12, we multiply the numerator and the denominator by 3 which gives us 3/36.

Notice that we now have like fractions since both fractions have a 36 in the denominator. To compare like fractions, we simply look at the numerators.

Here, since 3 is greater than 2, 3/36 must be greater than 2/36.

This means that 1/12 must be greater than 1/18.