Disregard this question I figured It out

Yes, the first term applies to the the first term in the statement , so for example, 

'The ratio of apples to oranges in the box is 2:5'

The 2 applies to the apples, and the 5 applies to the oranges. 

If the question was misread, it could be interpreted as 5 apples to 2 oranges, which is wrong.