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Why Estimate Before Dividing?

publish date: 2026/05/11 11:51:22.509046 UTC

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What is the main reason to estimate a quotient before performing exact long division?

To get an exact answer without doing the full division.

To get a rough idea of the size of the answer and to check for errors.

To determine which divisibility rule applies.

To find the remainder without any calculation.

Correct Answer

To get a rough idea of the size of the answer and to check for errors.

Explanation

Estimation gives a quick approximation so we know roughly what size the answer should be. If our exact long-division answer is far from the estimate, we know to recheck our work.

Reference

Mathematics for college students

Quizzes you can take where this question appears

Estimate quotients of whole numbers