Q&A for How to Calculate the Area of a Triangle

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  • Question
    How do I find the length and width of a triangle before calculating the area?
    Community Answer
    It should be included in the problem. If it is a right triangle, use the Pythagorean Theorem (A squared + B squared = C squared) to find the missing side.
  • Question
    How can I calculate the area of an equilateral triangle?
    Community Answer
    If you know the base and height, you can use the standard formula A = 1/2bh. If you know the three side lengths, you can use the method for equilateral triangles described in this article.
  • Question
    How can I find the area of an isosceles right triangle?
    Community Answer
    The legs must be the sides that are equal, so you just square the length of one of the legs and divide by 2. If you only have the hypotenuse: since isosceles right triangles come in the ratio 1-1-(square root of 2), you just divide the hypotenuse by sqrt(2), square what you get, and divide by 2.
  • Question
    If an equilateral triangle has an x for all sides, what is the area?
    Top Answerer
    This involves trigonometry. You have to find the height of the triangle, which is the distance from one vertex to the opposite side. The height is found by multiplying the length of a side (x) by half the tangent of 60°. (60° represents each of the angles in an equilateral triangle.) Half the tangent of 60° is 0.866. Thus the height is 0.866x. Multiply that by x and divide by two to get the area.
  • Question
    A triangle has an area of 24 square units. Its height is 6 units. What is the length of its base?
    Top Answerer
    To find the base, double the area, then divide by the height.
  • Question
    A triangle has a base length of 2x+4 and a height of 3y; what is the area?
    Community Answer
    Without more information, you can't find an exact value. You can, however, state the height as the value of 1/2bh by plugging in these expressions for the base and height. So the area is 1/2(2x+4)(3y); (x+2)(3y); 3xy + 6y.
  • Question
    How do I calculate the height of a triangle if I know the area and the base?
    Top Answerer
    Double the area, then divide by the base.
  • Question
    How can I mark the center point of any type of triangle?
    Community Answer
    To find the centroid of a triangle, use the formula from the preceding section that locates a point two-thirds of the distance from the vertex to the midpoint of the opposite side. For example: to find the centroid of a triangle with vertices at (0,0), (12,0) and (3,9), first find the midpoint of one of the sides.
  • Question
    If the sides of a triangle are 14 cm, 11 cm, and 9 cm, and the height is 7 cm, what is the area?
    Community Answer
    Since you know all three side lengths, you can use Heron's formula as described in this article. If you know which side functions as the base, you can use the formula A = 1/2bh
  • Question
    How do I calculate area when two angles and one side have been given?
    Community Answer
    Assuming your triangle is a right triangle, you can use trigonometry to find the other missing side lengths. Once you have all side lengths, you can use Heron's formula, as described in this article, to find the area. For more information on how to use trigonometry, you can read the following article: http://www.wikihow.com/Use-Right-Angled-Trigonometry
  • Question
    Why do we use root 3 over 4?
    Top Answerer
    Using geometry and trigonometry, that was found to be the easiest formula for finding the area of an equilateral triangle.
  • Question
    What is the logic behind multiplying by 1/2 the base?
    Community Answer
    The area of a triangle is always half the area of a rectangle with the same base and height. If you draw a rectangle around the triangle (draw a line going straight up from the base on each side and connect them with a line going through the tip of the triangle), the extra area you've added to make the rectangle is equal to the area of the original triangle. So the total area of the rectangle is two times the area of your triangle. Therefore, you have to divide the area of the rectangle (base times height) by 2 to get the area of the triangle.
  • Question
    How do I calculate 1/2 of the area of a triangle?
    Community Answer
    Half times half times base times height. Meaning half times the area of a triangle, which is half times base times height.
  • Question
    How do I find the area of a triangle with a rectangle attached to it?
    Community Answer
    Mentally cut the shape into the rectangle and triangle. Find the area of the rectangle my multiplying base by height and use one of the methods above for calculating the area of a triangle, add it, and then voila.
  • Question
    How do I calculate the base and height of a triangle when given only the area?
    Top Answerer
    You can't do what you want if all you know is the area.
  • Question
    What is the difference between pie and 3.14?
    Charlotte Cecillia Chang
    Community Answer
    First, it is ‘pi’ . And ‘pi’ equals to 3.14. It actually is way longer, but we can’t calculate the circumference with such a long number. So we use 3.14. It actually is 3.1415...
  • Question
    What is the area of a triangle whose base is 22, height is 25 and hypotenuse is 31?
    Community Answer
    You don't need the hypotenuse. Use the formula [(b)(h)] / 2. The area is [(22)(25)] / 2 = 550 / 2 = 275 square units.
  • Question
    Find the length of a rectangle whose area is 240cm3 and its width 8cm?
    Top Answerer
    Length equals area divided by width.
  • Question
    Suppose you have two equilateral triangles, one inside the other. Can you figure out the area of the space between the two triangles? Here's a hint: see how you can divide the area into three trapezoids?
    Top Answerer
    It can't be done without knowing the lengths of the sides of both triangles. You would also have to know the exact placement of the smaller triangle inside the larger triangle.
  • Question
    How do I calculate the area when one side is given for a right angled triangle?
    Top Answerer
    You would need more information to do that, such as another side length or one of the acute angles.
  • Question
    A triangular-shaped rug is 12 square meters and the height 3 meters. Find the base. What is the answer?
    Tina X
    Community Answer
    Use the formula for finding the area of the triangle. 12 x 2 = 24, 24/3 = 8. The base of this triangular shaped rug would be 8 meters.
  • Question
    How do I find the area of a triangle if the only thing I know is that the diameter is 3 inches?
    Tina X
    Community Answer
    Is there a circle circumscribing the triangle? If yes, draw a diagram. If not, the triangle shouldn't have a diameter.
  • Question
    If I have the area of a square that is double a triangle, can I halve the area of the square to get the area of the triangle? (sorry if this question doesn't make sense)
    Charlotte Cecillia Chang
    Community Answer
    Yes, you can. If you double the triangle’s area and got the square’s area, it makes sense.
  • Question
    How do you find the area of a triangle when you know all the side lengths but don't know which one is the base?
    Charlotte Cecillia Chang
    Community Answer
    The base is one of the sides of the triangle. The height of the triangle is how ‘tall’ your triangle is. From the base you chose to the pointed top. You use the formula:( Base x Height x 1/2) And you get the area of your triangle.
  • Question
    What will be the area of a triangle, if all of its interior angles (say a,b,c) are given?
    Community Answer
    If all you know is the angles, you cannot calculate the area, because a triangle with a given set of angles could be very large or very small.
  • Question
    How can I find the base of the triangle without being given the value of the area?
    Community Answer
    Pythagorean theorem. (a*a) + (b*b) = (c*c). a is one side of the triangle, b is another, and c is the third, the one you are looking for, the unknown.
  • Question
    How do I find the area of a triangle if I only know the height of the triangle?
    Top Answerer
    To find the area you have to know the base or be able to find the base by knowing the angles.
  • Question
    How do I find the area of a triangle when I know only the base and there is a 90 degree angle?
    Top Answerer
    You don't have enough information. A right triangle with a given base could have any height and, thus, any area.
  • Question
    How would I find the area of a right triangle given the base and diagonal lengths?
    Top Answerer
    If "diagonal length" means the hypotenuse, you would use trigonometry to find the altitude (which would be the third side). The area is half the product of the base and altitude.
  • Question
    How do you measure a triangle?
    Drew Hawkins1
    Community Answer
    Start by measuring the length of the base of the triangle. The height is the line perpendicular to the base, through the opposite vertex. Using these measurements, you can find the area of the triangle.
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