Okay, let's see. There's this problem about twelve friends who ordered meals, but the portions were so large that there was enough food for 18 people. Now, they want to know how many meals they should have ordered to have just enough food for the 12 of them. Hmm, I need to figure this out step by step.

First, let me try to understand the problem. So, originally, they each ordered one meal, making a total of 12 meals. But these meals were enough for 18 people. That means each meal must be enough for more than one person. So, if they share, how many meals should they have ordered to have just enough for 12 people.

Wait, maybe it's about portion sizes. Let's think in terms of portions. If 12 meals are enough for 18 people, that means each meal is equivalent to 18/12 portions. Let me calculate that. 18 divided by 12 is 1.5. So each meal is 1.5 portions. Therefore, to have enough food for 12 people, they need 12 portions. Since each meal is 1.5 portions, the number of meals needed would be 12 divided by 1.5. Let me do that calculation. 12 divided by 1.5 is 8. So, they should have ordered 8 meals. Wait, does that make sense?

Wait, let me check again. If 12 meals provide 18 portions, then each meal is 1.5 portions. So, to get 12 portions, you need 12 / 1.5 = 8 meals. Yeah, that seems right. So the answer should be 8 meals. But let me make sure I didn't mix up anything.

Alternatively, maybe it's a ratio problem. The original order was 12 meals for 18 people. So the ratio of meals per person is 12/18 = 2/3. Wait, that's the opposite. Wait, 12 meals for 18 people is 2/3 meal per person. So if they want to have enough for 12 people, they need 12 people multiplied by 2/3 meals per person, which is 8 meals. So same answer. So that's another way to think about it. Yeah, that confirms it.

Another way to approach this might be to set up a proportion. If 12 meals serve 18 people, then x meals serve 12 people. So, 12/18 = x/12. Solving for x: cross-multiply, 12*12 = 18x. 144 = 18x. x = 144/18 = 8. Yep, same result. So all methods lead to 8. Therefore, the answer should be 8 meals.
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