Which statement best defines a rational number?

Which statement best defines a rational number?

• A. A decimal that terminates only.
• B. Any number that can be expressed as a fraction of two integers.
• C. An irrational number.
• D. A number that cannot be expressed as a ratio of two integers.

Answer: (B)

Rational numbers are numbers that can be written as a fraction of two integers, with the denominator not zero. This means any number you can express as p/q where p and q are integers and q ≠ 0 is rational. That includes integers (like 4 or -3, written as 4/1 or -3/1) and fractions like 3/8 or -5/2. It also covers decimals that terminate or repeat, since those decimals correspond to some fraction of integers (for example, 0.75 is 3/4, and 0.333… is 1/3). The other statements are too narrow or opposite: a terminating decimal only excludes many rational numbers, irrational numbers cannot be written as a ratio of integers, and a number that cannot be expressed as a ratio is not rational.

Rational numbers are numbers that can be written as a fraction of two integers, with the denominator not zero. This means any number you can express as p/q where p and q are integers and q ≠ 0 is rational. That includes integers (like 4 or -3, written as 4/1 or -3/1) and fractions like 3/8 or -5/2. It also covers decimals that terminate or repeat, since those decimals correspond to some fraction of integers (for example, 0.75 is 3/4, and 0.333… is 1/3). The other statements are too narrow or opposite: a terminating decimal only excludes many rational numbers, irrational numbers cannot be written as a ratio of integers, and a number that cannot be expressed as a ratio is not rational.