Lesson 20 Section 3 than the whole, which is represented by 1.
Note that the number that follows "of" must be the denominator.
For that number signifies the whole; the numerator is the part
of the whole. 3 out of 5 signifies the ratio of 3 to 5: three
fifths. That is the ratio of those who responded yes to the
whole. (Lesson 18.) Moreover, the word fraction in everyday
usage means a ratio. When 3 out of 5 responded yes, we ask,
"What fraction responded yes?" It would be very wordy to ask,
"What is the ratio of those who responded yes to the total
number surveyed?" Yet that is what the former question means. To
write a fraction -- "3/5 responded yes" -- is a vulgarism. You
will never see it in any newspaper or journal. When we say it,
of course, there is no problem. In calculation, we often use a
fractional symbol to represent a ratio rather than a
measurement. Lesson 27, Question 1. Example 1. In a class of 20
students, 3 were absent. What fraction were absent? What
fraction were present? What percent were ab