A ratio is a comparison of two numbers or measurements. The numbers or measurements being compared are called the terms of the ratio. A rate is a special ratio in which the two terms are in different units. For example, if a 12-ounce can of corn costs 69¢, the rate is 69¢ for 12 ounces. The first term of the ratio is measured in cents; the second term in ounces. You can write this rate as 69¢/12 ounces or 69¢:12 ounces. Both expressions mean that you pay 69¢ "for every" 12 ounces of corn.
Rates are used by people every day, such as when they work 40 hours a week or earn interest every year at a bank. When rates are expressed as a quantity of 1, such as 2 feet per second or 5 miles per hour, they are called unit rates
