Geometry and TrigonometryHardArea of a trapezoid
Geometry and Trigonometry practice question
A trapezoid has parallel sides of lengths 8 and 12, and the perpendicular distance between them is 5. What is the area of the trapezoid?
Answer: 50
The area of a trapezoid is the average of the parallel sides times the height: (8 + 12)/2 × 5 = 10 × 5 = 50.
Common wrong answers
- If you answered 40
- 40 is 8 × 5, using only the shorter base. Both bases contribute; use their average, 10.
- If you answered 60
- 60 is 12 × 5, using only the longer base. The average of 8 and 12 is 10.
- If you answered 100
- 100 is (8 + 12) × 5 — the two bases were added but not averaged. Halve the sum first.
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