Question

The sides of a rectangle are in the ratio 4:5
i)by what fraction should the shorter side be increased to make it square?
ii)by what fraction should the longer side be decreased to make it square?

Answer 1

Let the length be 5cm, and the breadth be 4cm.

Step-by-step explanation:

i)by what fraction should the shorter side be increased to make it square?

• To make the rectangle a square you need to first make the sides equal.
• To increase the shorter side you would want 4 cm to become 5 cm, for which you need to first find the difference.
• 5cm - 4cm = 1cm
• Now to find the fraction, divide the difference with the shorter side.
• 1cm/4cm = 1/4
• Hence, you need to increase the shorter side by 1/4th fraction to make it a square.

ii)by what fraction should the longer side be decreased to make it square?

• To make the rectangle a square you need to first make the sides equal.
• To decrease the longer side you would want 5 cm to become 4 cm, for which you need to first find the difference.
• 5cm - 4cm = 1cm
• Now to find the fraction, divide the difference with the longer side.
• 1cm/5cm = 1/5
• Hence, you need to increase the shorter side by 1/5th fraction to make it a square.