You are making a recipe that calls for 2 /3 cup of water, but you cannot find your 1 /3 cup measure. You do have your 1/ 4 cup measure. How many times will you have to fill your 1/ 4 cup measure to measure out 2/ 3 cup of water?
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
To find out how many times you need to fill a 1/4 cup to equal 2/3 cup, we divide the target amount by the available measuring cup size:23÷14\frac{2}{3} \div \frac{1}{4}32÷41
To divide fractions, multiply the first fraction by the reciprocal of the second:23×41=83\frac{2}{3} \times \frac{4}{1} = \frac{8}{3}32×14=38
This means:83=223\frac{8}{3} = 2 \frac{2}{3}38=232
Final Answer:
You need to fill the 1/4 cup measure 2 full times and then fill 2/3 of it once more.
Explanation
When you do not have the exact measuring cup required for a recipe, you can use basic fraction operations to substitute with a different cup size. In this case, the recipe calls for 2/3 cup of water, and you only have a 1/4 cup measure available. The problem is to determine how many 1/4 cups are needed to equal 2/3 cup.
To solve this, you need to divide 2/3 by 1/4. This is written mathematically as:23÷14\frac{2}{3} \div \frac{1}{4}32÷41
When dividing fractions, the rule is to multiply by the reciprocal of the divisor. So you flip the second fraction (1/4 becomes 4/1) and multiply:23×41=83\frac{2}{3} \times \frac{4}{1} = \frac{8}{3}32×14=38
This result, 8/3, tells you that eight-thirds of a 1/4 cup is equivalent to 2/3 cup. To understand it more practically, divide 8 by 3:
- 3 goes into 8 two times (2 × 3 = 6)
- Remainder: 8 − 6 = 2
So, you get 2 full scoops of 1/4 cup, and you still need 2/3 of another 1/4 cup to complete the measurement.
This process shows how flexible and useful fraction operations can be in the kitchen. Knowing how to convert between different units allows you to measure accurately even without the exact tools on hand.
