What is the area of a triangle if the base is 12 inches and the height is 18 inches?

Question

What is the area of a triangle if the base is 12 inches and the height is 18 inches?

Answer 1

To find the area of a triangle, you can use the formula: Area = (1/2) x base x height.

In this case, the base of the triangle is given as 12 inches, and the height is given as 18 inches.

To calculate the area, you need to substitute these values into the formula:

Area = (1/2) x 12 inches x 18 inches

First, multiply the values inside the parentheses:

Area = 6 inches x 18 inches

Then, perform the multiplication:

Area = 108 square inches

Therefore, the area of the triangle is 108 square inches.

Answer 2

With no knowledge of the trigonometry of triangles, argue it like this. The question wouldn't have been asked if there wasn't a unique answer, so the answer must be the same regardless of whereabouts above the base the apex is - including the special case in which it's directly above one of the ends of the base. That would make the base and vertical two sides of a rectangle of lengths 12 and 18 inches respectively. That would make the area of the rectangle 12x18=216 square inches, and the triangle must be half of this, which is 108 square inches. Now do it properly: the rule is that the area of a triangle is half the base times the height, which is 12x18/2 = 12x9 = 108 square inches.