One-hundredth

The idea

Splitting each one-tenth into 10 equal parts gives one-hundredth (1/100) of a unit; 10 hundredths make 1 tenth and 100 hundredths make 1 unit, so a quantity can be written in units, tenths and hundredths, or wholly in hundredths.

A folded strip

A strip of paper is 8 9/10 units long. It is folded in half. Its new length is between 4 4/10 and 4 5/10 units.

Can we write its length exactly with tenths only?

• Yes, it is exactly 4 4/10
• Yes, it is exactly 4 5/10
• No, we need even smaller parts

A square of 100

One unit is a 10 × 10 square. Each row is one tenth. Each small square is one-hundredth of the unit. Use the buttons or tap a square.

Hundredths

Each tenth is cut into 10 equal parts. Each part is one-hundredth (1/100) of a unit. These three are the same length:

Splitting each one-tenth into 10 equal parts gives one-hundredth of a unit. 10 hundredths make 1 tenth, and 100 hundredths make 1 unit. A quantity can be written in units, tenths and hundredths, or wholly in hundredths.

• Written | Read as
• 1 1/10 4/100 | 1 unit, 1 tenth, 4 hundredths
• 1 14/100 | 1 unit, 14 hundredths
• 114/100 | 114 hundredths

Notes

Split each tenth into 10 equal parts: each is one-hundredth. 10 hundredths = 1 tenth, 100 hundredths = 1 unit. A quantity can be written in units, tenths and hundredths, or wholly in hundredths.

Check yourself

How many hundredths make 1 tenth?

Answer: 10

10 hundredths make 1 tenth, and 10 tenths make 1 unit: 100 hundredths make a unit.

3 tenths and 2 hundredths is how many hundredths in all?

Answer: 32 hundredths

3 tenths = 30 hundredths. Add 2 hundredths: 32 hundredths.

Which is the same length as 1 1/10 4/100?

How many hundredths make 2 units?

Answer: 200 hundredths

1 unit = 100 hundredths, so 2 units = 200 hundredths.

• 1 5/100. That adds 1 and 4. A tenth is worth 10 hundredths.
• 1 14/100 — correct. Yes! 1 tenth is 10 hundredths, and 10 + 4 = 14 hundredths.
• 14 1/100. That has 14 whole units. The length is just over 1 unit.