Question

Priya's cat weights 5 1/2 pounds and her dog weighs 8 1/4 pounds. The dog is ______ pounds heavier than the cat.

Answer 1

2 3/4

Steps

8 1/4 - 5 1/2

a. Find Common Denominator

8 1/4 - 5 2/4

b. Make Improper Fractions

8 × 4 + 1 = 33

33/4

5 × 4 + 2

22/4

c. Subtract

33/4 - 22/4 = 11/4

d. Simplify

11/4 = 2 3/4

e. Answer

Therefore, Priya's dog is 2 3/4 pounds heavier than the cat.

Answer 2

Answer:

$2\frac{3}{4}$

Step-by-step explanation:

We have to subtract the weight of the cat from the weight of the dog.

$8\frac{1}{4} -5\frac{1}{2}$

The first issue here is that there is not a common denominator. I'm going to multiply that 1/2 by 2 to make it 2/4. The 5 does NOT change.

$8\frac{1}{4} -5\frac{2}{4}$

Subtract the whole numbers first.

$8\frac{1}{4} -5\frac{2}{4} = 3\frac{1}{4} -\frac{2}{4}$

Then, we'll convert the first term to an improper fraction. We can do that by multiplying the whole number by the denominator and adding that number to the numerator.

$3\frac{1}{4} -\frac{2}{4} ==> \frac{13}{4} - \frac{2}{4}$

Solve.

$\frac{13}{4} -\frac{2}{4} = \frac{11}{4}$

Then, convert to a mixed number by dividing 11 by 4 and leaving the remainder in the numerator and putting the quotient in front as the whole number.

$\frac{11}{4} ==> 2\frac{3}{4}$

So, the answer is $2\frac{3}{4}$