Divide 5000 by 125 in one step

Question

125 looks intimidating but it's just 1000/8. Solve in your head. What is 5000 \div 125? Aim: under 10 seconds.

Accepted Answer

Since 125 = 	frac{1000}{8}, dividing by 125 means dividing by 1000 and multiplying by 8: \frac{5000}{125} = \frac{5000}{1000} 	imes 8 = 5 	imes 8 = 40. So 5000 \div 125 = \mathbf{40}. Drop three zeros to get 5, then multiply by 8. Check: 125 	imes 40 = 5000. Correct. Takeaway. Divide by 125 = "\div 1000, then 	imes 8." Learn the reciprocals-of-1000 family: 125, 250, 500 all reduce division to a shift and a small multiply.

Divide 5000 by 125 in one step

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