What is 1/4 minus 1/2?

Looking for the result of 1/4 - 1/2? Follow this step-by-step guide to understand how to subtract these two fractions.

How to subtract 1/4 by 1/2?

1 4 − 1 2 = (1 × 2) − (1 × 4) 4 × 2 = -2 8 = -1 4
  1. Multiply the numerator of the first term, with the denominator of the second term: 1 × 2 = 2
  2. Multiply the numerator of the second term, with the denominator of the first term: 1 × 4 = 4
  3. Subtract both of these results together to form the new numerator: 2 − 4 = -2
  4. Multiply both denominators together to form the new denominator: 4 × 2 = 8
  5. Combine the results to get the new fraction: -2/8
  6. Simplify the fraction (-2/8) by dividing both the numerator and the denominator by their GCD (2):
    • -2/2 = -1
    • 8/2 = 4
  7. This gives: -1/4.

The result of subtracting 1/4 and 1/2 is : -1/4 (or -0.25 in its decimal form)