Question

In a box of pencils, there are 6 regular pencils and 3 mechanical pencils. Write the ratio of mechanical pencils to regular
pencils and describe the ratio. What is the ratio of mechanical pencils to regular pencils?


1 to 6

3 to 6

3 to 9

6 to 3

Answer 1

To find the ratio of mechanical pencils to regular pencils, we can use the counts provided:

- Number of mechanical pencils = 3
- Number of regular pencils = 6

The ratio of mechanical pencils to regular pencils is expressed as:

\[
\text{Ratio} = \frac{\text{Number of mechanical pencils}}{\text{Number of regular pencils}} = \frac{3}{6}
\]

We can simplify this ratio:

\[
\frac{3}{6} = \frac{1}{2}
\]

Thus, the ratio of mechanical pencils to regular pencils can also be expressed as 1 to 2.

Given the provided options:

1. 1 to 6
2. 3 to 6
3. 3 to 9
4. 6 to 3

The best match from the options would be **3 to 6**, as it represents the original counts of mechanical to regular pencils.

In summary:

- The ratio of mechanical pencils to regular pencils is **3 to 6**.
- This means there are 3 mechanical pencils for every 6 regular pencils, or for every 1 mechanical pencil, there are 2 regular pencils.