Multiplication and Division Word Problems

Front

What is multiplication?

Back

Multiplication is a mathematical operation that represents the repeated addition of a number. For example, 3 multiplied by 4 (3 x 4) means adding 3 four times (3 + 3 + 3 + 3) which equals 12.

Front

What is division?

Back

Division is a mathematical operation that represents the process of splitting a number into equal parts. For example, 12 divided by 3 (12 ÷ 3) means splitting 12 into 3 equal groups, which equals 4.

Front

How do you solve a word problem involving multiplication?

Back

To solve a multiplication word problem, identify the quantities being multiplied, determine the operation needed, and then multiply the numbers. For example, if a problem states that there are 4 bags with 5 apples each, you would calculate 4 x 5.

Front

How do you solve a word problem involving division?

Back

To solve a division word problem, identify the total quantity and the number of groups or parts, then divide the total by the number of groups. For example, if there are 20 cookies and 4 friends, you would calculate 20 ÷ 4.

Front

What operation would you use to find out how much change Sue gets back after buying t-shirts?

Back

You would use multiplication to find the total cost of the t-shirts and subtraction to find the change from the $50 bill.

Front

If a librarian has 2,345 books and 8 shelves, how do you find out how many books fit on each shelf?

Back

You would use division to find out how many books fit on each shelf by dividing the total number of books (2,345) by the number of shelves (8).

Front

What is the remainder in a division problem?

Back

The remainder is the amount left over after division when the numbers do not divide evenly. For example, in 10 ÷ 3, the quotient is 3 and the remainder is 1.

Front

What does it mean to group items equally?

Back

Grouping items equally means dividing a total number of items into the same number of groups, so each group has the same amount. For example, if you have 12 candies and you want to group them into 4 equal groups, each group will have 3 candies.

Front

How can you check your answer after solving a multiplication problem?

Back

You can check your answer by using division. If you multiplied 3 x 4 to get 12, you can check by dividing 12 by 4 to see if you get back to 3.

Front

What is a real-life example of using division?

Back

A real-life example of division is sharing a pizza among friends. If you have 8 slices of pizza and 4 friends, you would divide the 8 slices by 4 to find out that each friend gets 2 slices.