1/7 divided by what equals 5/8?

Here we will show you how to calculate "what" in this sentence: "1/7 divided by what equals 5/8?" We start by making this word problem into an algebraic equation where "what" is the variable "x".

(1/7) / x = (5/8)

To solve this equation, we want x alone so we start by multiplying x on both sides like this:

((1/7) / x)x = (5/8)x

Which equals:

(1/7) = (5/8)x

Then we divide each side by 5/8 to like this:

(1/7) / (5/8) = ((5/8)x) / (5/8)

(1/7) / (5/8) is 8/35 and ((5/8)x) / (5/8) leaves x which means we end up with x = 8/35. Therefore, the answer to "1/7 divided by what equals 5/8?" is as follows:

8/35

It is always good to double-check your math to make sure you did it right. When we entered 8/35 for x in this equation (1/7) / x = (5/8), we get the following true equation which means our math is correct.

(1/7) / (8/35) = (5/8)

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