A fair six-sided die is rolled. What is the probability of rolling an even number?

A fair six-sided die is rolled. What is the probability of rolling an even number?

• A. 1/3
• B. 1/2
• C. 2/3
• D. 3/4

Answer: (B)

With a fair die, each of the six faces is equally likely to land face up, each with probability 1/6. The even numbers on a standard die are 2, 4, and 6—three outcomes in total. So the probability of rolling an even number is the number of favorable outcomes over the total outcomes: 3/6, which simplifies to 1/2. Since exactly half of the faces are even, this result makes intuitive sense: the chance of landing even is one-half.

With a fair die, each of the six faces is equally likely to land face up, each with probability 1/6. The even numbers on a standard die are 2, 4, and 6—three outcomes in total. So the probability of rolling an even number is the number of favorable outcomes over the total outcomes: 3/6, which simplifies to 1/2. Since exactly half of the faces are even, this result makes intuitive sense: the chance of landing even is one-half.