📏 Area Formulas

Question 1

Why is area of a rectangle l × w?

Answer 1

Area = how many squares fit inside. A rectangle is literally rows × columns of unit squares, so length × width counts them.

Question 2

Why is area of a triangle 1/2 x base x height?

Answer 2

A triangle is just half of a rectangle/parallelogram. If you double it by mirroring, you get a rectangle. That’s why you take half of base × height.

Question 3

Why is area of a circle** πr^2**?

Answer 3

Radius = distance from center to edge. Imagine cutting a circle into slices and rearranging them into a rough rectangle. The “height” = r, the “base” = half of base x height.