Rules for Multiplying Fractions

Maxwell entered math class dreading the thought of learning more about fractions. His teacher hung
up a poster to start the lesson. It said:
No Need for LCD
Multiplying Fractions Easy
Numerator times Numerator
Denominator times Denominator
Simplify
Maxwell's eyes focused on one word: EASY. He wondered, could multiplying fractions actually be
easy? He couldn't wait to find out.

No Need for LCD

Maxwell remembered from other math lessons that LCD stands for 'least common denominator'. He
discovered that the reason you don't have to find the LCD when you multiply fractions is because
you simply multiply across from left to right and the denominators do NOT have to match.

Numerator Times Numerator

The first rule in multiplying fractions is to multiply the numerators of the fractions.
The numerator of a fraction is the number that appears on top.

In the fraction above, the 3 is the numerator because it appears on top.

So, if we are multiplying
We have to multiply the two numerators first. The numerators in this problem are 3 and 2 because
they appear on top of the fractions.
3x2=6

Denominator Times Denominator

After multiplying the numerators from left to right, the next step is to multiply the denominators of the
fractions in the problem. The denominator is the number that appears at the bottom of a fraction.

The 4 and 5 are the denominators in our equation because they appear at the bottom of each
fraction.
4 x 5 = 20. So, the number 20 would represent the denominator of the final answer.
Our equation will look like this:

Simplify
The last step in multiplying fractions is to simplify, or break down your answer to lowest terms by
reducing. To simplify a fraction, you must divide the top and bottom by the highest number that can
divide into both numbers exactly.
This fraction can still be reduced because both the numerator and denominator can be divided
evenly by two.

This fraction is in lowest terms. (There is no number both 3 and 10 can be divided by evenly)
So the most exact answer for our problem is:
Examples of Multiplying Fractions
Let's practice with another problem.

Numerator x numerator. The two numerators are 6 and 1, so we will multiply 6 x 1 = 6.

Write 6 as the numerator for the answer.
Denominator x denominator. 7 and 4 are the denominators, so we will multiply 7 x 4 = 28.
Write 28 as the denominator in the answer.
Simplify -

This can be reduced or simplified by dividing the numerator and denominator by 2

To unlock this le