Denominator

Denominator
Denominator is the number that is placed below the horizontal line of a fraction. It is the bottom number of a fraction that shows the total number of equal parts an object is divided into. Let us learn more about the denominator in this page.
What is a Denominator?
A denominator is the part of a fraction that comes below the fractional bar. The denominator shows the total amount of parts that make up a whole. A fraction can be identified by a horizontal bar between two numbers and sometimes the symbol "/". This bar or symbol is known as the "fractional bar." The number on the top is known as the "numerator", and the number below the fractional bar is known as the
"denominator".
For any fraction a/b, 'a' is the numerator and 'b' is the denominator. Fractions represent a part of a whole. Mathematically, it is shown by the division of two numbers. For example, 1/4 is one part out of the four equal parts created from that one whole thing. Here, 1 is the numerator and 4 is the denominator.

Numerator and Denominator

The denominator indicates how many parts make up a unit or a whole. The numerator indicates the number of parts that we have selected out of the total number of equal parts. For example, in the fraction 3/5, the numerator 3 represents 3 equal parts selected by us, and the denominator 5 represents the 5 equal parts created initially. The 5 equal parts make up a whole. Observe the fraction model given below. The shaded portion represents the fraction 3/5. Three portions are shaded (Numerator) out of the total 5 portions created (denominator).

Examples of Denominator

The examples of denominators can be understood in a simple way. In the fraction x/y, x is the numerator and y is the denominator. Apart from numbers, variables are also expressed in the same form such as x/y, a/b, p/q, where y, b and q are the denominators respectively. Some examples of denominators are given in the table below:

Fractions	Denominator
1/3	3
11/20	20
6/(x-2y)	x-2y