Division

In mathematics, division is an arithmetic operation which is the inverse of multiplication.

Overview

Definition

If and , then , where is the dividend, is the divisor, and is the quotient.

Process

The most common division algorithm used is with long division, a process that divides parts of numbers. Long division "breaks" up the number to make division simpler.

      19
   6)114
     -6
      54      
     -54 
       0

Conventions

If the quotient is not a whole number, it is usually written in decimal form: . Sometimes, it is written with its remainder: .

Dividing Special Numbers

Fractions

If you divide by a fraction, multiply the dividend by the divisor's reciprocal (Note: You will see a definition of a reciprocal if you go to the article Ordinary Multiplication).

For instance:

Decimals

When dividing by decimals, multiply both sides by a power of 10 so the divisor is an integer.

For instance:

One and Itself

Any number divided by one equals itself. Similarly, any number divided by itself equals one.

For instance: and

Zero

Division by is undefined and will cause the equation to fail.

See Also

• Addition
• Subtraction
• Multiplication