There are 5 white buttons and 3 orange buttons in a bag. One button is selected at random. What is the probability of NOT selecting a white button?
- 5 white buttons
- 3 orange buttons
Choose the best answer.
Note
For a “not” event, count the outcomes outside the named event. This is the complement of the event.
- The complement of selecting white is selecting any other color.
- There are 3 non-white buttons out of 8 total buttons.
- So the probability is 3/8 = 3/8.
- A complement probability can also be found by doing 1 minus the probability of the event.
The correct answer is 3/8. This matches the calculation or definition, so students should focus on the reasoning rather than only memorizing the final value.