Adding fractions word problems

Adding fractions word problems arise in many situations. I will not show you how to add fractions here. Adding fractions will show you how to add fractions and it has a fraction calculator to help you practice.

Example #1:
John walked 1/2 of a mile yesterday and 3/4 of a mile today. How many miles has John walked?

Solution

This word problem requires addition of fractions

Choosing a common denominator of 4, we get

1/2 + 3/4 = 2/4 + 3/4 = 5/4

So, John walked a total of 5/4 miles

Example #2:
Mary is preparing a final exam. She study 3/2 hours on Friday, 6/4 hours on Saturday, and 2/3 hours on Sunday. How many hours she studied over the weekend

Solution

This word problem requires addition of fractions

Choosing a common denominator of 12, we get:

3/2 + 5/4 + 2/3 = 18/12 + 15/12 + 8/12 = 41/12 = 3.42 hours

So, Mary studied a total of 3.42 hours

Example #3:
A recipe requires 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 3/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper. How much pepper does this recipe need?

Solution

Choosing 4 as a common denominator, we get:

1/4 + 3/4 + 1/2 = 1/4 + 3/4 + 2/4 = 5/4 = 1.25

So, the recipe needs 1.25 or 1 teaspoon and one-fourth of a teaspoon pepper.