Decimal Fraction

A decimal fraction is a numeral that uses the numeration system, based on 10, to represent numbers that are not necessarily whole numbers. The numeral includes a dot, called the decimal point.

The digits to the right of the decimal point extend the place-values to tenths, hundredths, thousandths, and so forth. For example, the decimal fraction 5.403 means "5 ones, 4 tenths, 0 hundredths, and 3 thousandths." The same number can also be represented by a common fraction, such as 5403/1000, or as a mixed number, 5 403/1000.