What is 1/8 minus 5/8?

Looking for the result of 1/8 - 5/8? Follow this step-by-step guide to understand how to subtract these two fractions.

How to subtract 1/8 by 5/8?

1 8 − 5 8 = (1 × 8) − (5 × 8) 8 × 8 = -32 64 = -1 2
  1. Multiply the numerator of the first term, with the denominator of the second term: 1 × 8 = 8
  2. Multiply the numerator of the second term, with the denominator of the first term: 5 × 8 = 40
  3. Subtract both of these results together to form the new numerator: 8 − 40 = -32
  4. Multiply both denominators together to form the new denominator: 8 × 8 = 64
  5. Combine the results to get the new fraction: -32/64
  6. Simplify the fraction (-32/64) by dividing both the numerator and the denominator by their GCD (32):
    • -32/32 = -1
    • 64/32 = 2
  7. This gives: -1/2.

The result of subtracting 1/8 and 5/8 is : -1/2 (or -0.5 in its decimal form)