Fractions on the Line

A fraction can be more than 1. 4/3 means 4 parts, each a third of a whole. Three thirds already fill one whole, so 4/3 is one whole and one third more: on the line it sits one third past 1. Whenever the numerator is bigger than the denominator, the fraction is bigger than 1.

Thirds keep going past 1 in the same steps.

The steps carry on past 1 at the same size: one third, two thirds, three thirds, four thirds, and so on. 3/3 lands exactly on 1 and 6/3 on 2. A fraction whose numerator equals its denominator is one whole.

Fractions also run left of zero, in the same steps: -2/3 is two thirds to the left of 0. To place any fraction, the denominator tells you how finely to cut each whole, and the numerator how many parts to count from 0. With the same denominator, more parts means further right, so five thirds is greater than four thirds.