Question

Change the fraction 1/5 to a percent

Answer 1

To write a fraction as a percent, first remember that a percent is a ratio of a number to 100. If we wanted to write $\frac{1}{5}$ as a percent, we need to find a fraction equivalent to $\frac{1}{5}$ that has a 100 in the denominator. We can do this by setting up a proportion.

$\frac{1}{5}$ = $\frac{n}{100}$

Now, we can use cross products to find the missing value.

5n = 100

÷5     ÷5   ← divide by 5 on both sides

 

 n = 20

Therefore, $\frac{1}{5}$ can be written as 20%.

Answer 2

Converting 1/5 to the decimal fraction 0.20 may make understanding this problem a bit easier.

Since 1/5 = 0.20,

1/5 = 0.20(100^) = 20%.