Example

Dividing the Complex Fraction 6x27x+24x82x27x+3x25x+6\frac{\frac{6x^2-7x+2}{4x-8}}{\frac{2x^2-7x+3}{x^2-5x+6}}

Divide 6x27x+24x82x27x+3x25x+6\frac{\frac{6x^2-7x+2}{4x-8}}{\frac{2x^2-7x+3}{x^2-5x+6}}.

Because a fraction bar represents division, a complex fraction is simply another way of writing the division of two fractions.

Step 1 — Rewrite with a division sign. The main fraction bar separates the numerator fraction from the denominator fraction:

6x27x+24x8÷2x27x+3x25x+6\frac{6x^2-7x+2}{4x-8} \div \frac{2x^2-7x+3}{x^2-5x+6}

Step 2 — Rewrite as the product of the first fraction and the reciprocal of the second:

6x27x+24x8x25x+62x27x+3\frac{6x^2-7x+2}{4x-8} \cdot \frac{x^2-5x+6}{2x^2-7x+3}

Step 3 — Factor the numerators and denominators, then multiply. Factor each polynomial:

  • 6x27x+2=(2x1)(3x2)6x^2-7x+2 = (2x-1)(3x-2)
  • 4x8=4(x2)4x-8 = 4(x-2)
  • x25x+6=(x2)(x3)x^2-5x+6 = (x-2)(x-3)
  • 2x27x+3=(2x1)(x3)2x^2-7x+3 = (2x-1)(x-3)

The expression becomes:

(2x1)(3x2)(x2)(x3)4(x2)(2x1)(x3)\frac{(2x-1)(3x-2)(x-2)(x-3)}{4(x-2)(2x-1)(x-3)}

Step 4 — Simplify by dividing out common factors. Cancel the shared factors (2x1)(2x-1), (x2)(x-2), and (x3)(x-3):

3x24\frac{3x-2}{4}

This example shows that when a division of rational expressions is written as a complex fraction (one fraction stacked over another), the first step is to rewrite the main fraction bar as a division sign. From there, the standard procedure applies: multiply by the reciprocal, factor, and cancel.

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Updated 2026-04-21

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