Simplify the operation
Reduce (simplify) the fractions to their lowest terms equivalents:
By reducing the values of the numerators and denominators of the fractions, further calculations with these fractions become easier to do.
To reduce a fraction to the lowest terms equivalent: divide both the numerator and denominator by their greatest common factor, GCF.
- 4/10 = - 22/(2 × 5) = - (22 ÷ 2)/((2 × 5) ÷ 2) = - 2/5
- 8/18 = - 23/(2 × 32) = - (23 ÷ 2)/((2 × 32) ÷ 2) = - 4/9
In fact, the two fractions have equal numerators
The numerator of one of the reduced fractions is equal to the numerator of the other initial fraction:
- 4/9 and - 4/10
The fractions have the same numerator, compare their denominators.
This is one of the simplest cases when comparing two fractions.
The larger the denominator the larger the negative fraction.
The larger the denominator the smaller the positive fraction.
::: The operation of comparing fractions :::
The final answer: