Final answer:
To make one fruitcake, you would need 1 1/8 cups of flour.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find out how many cups of flour are needed for one fruitcake, we can set up a proportion using the given information. If 4 1/2 cups of flour are needed to make 4 fruit cakes, then we can set up the proportion: 4 1/2 cups / 4 cakes = x cups / 1 cake. To solve for x, cross multiply and divide: (4 1/2) * 1 = 4 * x. Simplifying, we get 9/2 = 4x. Dividing both sides by 4, we find that x = 9/8 or 1 1/8 cups of flour are needed for one fruitcake.