Question

A drawer contains both shirts and shorts. The ratio of shirts to shorts is 4:1

A: What is the ratio of shirts to the total number of clothing?
B: What is the ratio of shorts to the total number of clothing?

Answer 1

Let x = number of shirts.
Let y = number of shorts.

The ratio of shirts to shorts is 4:1, therefore
x/y = 4 (1)
Therefore
y/x = 1/4 (2)

The total number of clothing is (x + y).

A.
The ratio of shirts to the total number of clothing is

`(x)/(x+y) \\= (x/y)/(x/y+1) \\ = (4)/(4+1) \\ = (4)/(5)`
Answer: 4/5

B.
The ratio of shorts to the total number of clothing is

`(y)/(x+y) \\ = (1)/(x/y+1) \\ = (1)/(4+1) \\ = (1)/(5)`
Answer: 1/5