Fractions | Maths Grade 5 CBSE

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Six ideas about fractions

A fraction is equal parts of one whole. Tap each term to see what it means, with a tasty everyday example.

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The three big ideas

A fraction tells us about equal parts of one whole — like one cake or one ribbon.
The bottom number says how many equal parts the whole is cut into. The top number says how many parts we take.
If the pieces are not equal, it is not a true fraction — fairness is the whole point.

Worked example. A roti is cut into 4 equal pieces and you eat 3. What fraction did you eat?

4 equal parts in all (bottom), 3 taken (top): you ate ¾ of the roti — one-quarter is still left.

Half (½) — the whole cut into 2 equal parts. Half a glass of milk, half a chapati.
Third (⅓) — cut into 3 equal parts. One-third of a watermelon shared by 3 friends.
Quarter (¼) — cut into 4 equal parts. A quarter of a chikki, a quarter past an hour.
Parts can join: two-quarters (²⁄₄) cover the same amount as one-half (½).

Worked example. A pizza has 4 equal slices. You eat 2. What fraction is that — and what simpler name does it have?

2 out of 4 slices = ²⁄₄. Two of the four slices make up half the pizza, so it is also ½.

For the same whole, the more equal pieces you cut, the smaller each piece becomes.
So ½ is bigger than ⅓, and ⅓ is bigger than ¼ — even though 4 is a bigger number than 2!
When the top numbers are the same (like ⅓ and ¼), just look at the bottom: the smaller bottom gives the bigger piece.

Worked example. Riya eats ½ of a bar and Sameer eats ¼ of an equal bar. Who ate more?

Cut into 2, each half is large; cut into 4, each quarter is small. So Riya (½) ate more than Sameer (¼).

Common mix-up: thinking a bigger bottom number means a bigger fraction. It is the opposite — for the same whole, ¼ is smaller than ½ because the cake is shared among more people.

Where you’ll meet it

Fractions around the house

Sharing food

Splitting a dosa between two friends is ½ each; sharing 3 laddus among 6 children is ½ a laddu each. Fractions make sharing fair.

Telling the time

“Half past four” and “quarter past nine” come straight from fractions — half and a quarter of an hour gone by.

Cooking measures

Recipes ask for half a cup of rice or a quarter spoon of salt. Measuring cups and spoons are fractions you can hold.

Check yourself

Quick quiz

Ten friendly questions — mostly multiple-choice with one assertion–reason — to check that you can use fractions, not just remember them.

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