freeCodeCamp/guide/english/mathematics/improper-fractions/index.md

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title: Improper Fractions
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## Improper Fractions

Fractions of integers can be classified as either proper or improper, though this distinction has no effect mathematically on how to [add/multiply/use](https://github.com/freeCodeCamp/freeCodeCamp/blob/master/guide/english/mathematics/fractions/index.md) them.

If we have a fraction a/b, where a and b are integers and b is not 0, then when a < b or |a| < |b| we say the fraction is *proper*. All other fractions are called *improper*.

For example, 1/2, 2/3, 3/5 and -6/17 are all proper fractions, while 1/1, 3/2, -4/3 and 99/3 are all improper fractions.

The term likely originates from the original use of fractions to be [part of a whole](http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/70437.html) and improper fractions are the generalization to this notion.