How do you evaluate -5- - 4\frac { 1} { 4} + 3\frac { 1} { 4} + - 6?

1 Answer
Jul 10, 2018

-3 1/2

Explanation:

Let's simplify the addition / subtraction signs first. Here's a simple rule,
BBC-Two signs

-5- -4 1/4+3 1/4 + -6
=-5color(red)+4 1/4+3 1/4color(red) -6

Next step is to convert all number to improper fractions to make adding and subtracting easy. We'll keep 4 as the denominator (number at the bottom).

=-20/4+17/4+13/4 -24/4

=(-20+17+13-24)/4

=-14/4

=-3 2/4 (convert to mixed fraction)

=-3 1/2 (simplify 2/4 to 1/2)