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This is denoted as 20 / 5 = 4, or 20 / 5 = 4. [2] In the example, 20 is the dividend, 5 is the divisor, and 4 is the quotient. Unlike the other basic operations, when dividing natural numbers there is sometimes a remainder that will not go evenly into the dividend; for example, 10 / 3 leaves a
The largest number that the divisor 4 can be multiplied by without exceeding 5 is 1, so the digit 1 is put above the 5 to start constructing the quotient. Next, the 1 is multiplied by the divisor 4, to obtain the largest whole number that is a multiple of the divisor 4 without exceeding the 5 (4 in this case).
Long division is the standard algorithm used for pen-and-paper division of multi-digit numbers expressed in decimal notation. It shifts gradually from the left to the right end of the dividend, subtracting the largest possible multiple of the divisor (at the digit level) at each stage; the multiples then become the digits of the quotient, and the final difference is then the remainder.
The picture to the right illustrates 3 / 4 of a cake. Fractions can be used to represent ratios and division. [1] Thus the fraction 3 / 4 can be used to represent the ratio 3:4 (the ratio of the part to the whole), and the division 3 ÷ 4 (three divided by four).
Integer arithmetic is not closed under division. This means that when dividing one integer by another integer, the result is not always an integer. For instance, 7 divided by 2 is not a whole number but 3.5. [73] One way to ensure that the result is an integer is to round the result to a whole number.
Variables of BigNumber type can be used, or regular numbers can be converted to big numbers using conversion operator # (e.g., #2.3^2000.1). SmartXML big numbers can have up to 100,000,000 decimal digits and up to 100,000,000 whole digits.
The number q is called the quotient, while r is called the remainder. (For a proof of this result, see Euclidean division. For algorithms describing how to calculate the remainder, see division algorithm.) The remainder, as defined above, is called the least positive remainder or simply the remainder. [2]
Loosely speaking, since division by zero has no meaning (is undefined) in the whole number setting, this remains true as the setting expands to the real or even complex numbers. [22] As the realm of numbers to which these operations can be applied expands there are also changes in how the operations are viewed.