What is the formula for the area of a rectangle?

What is the formula for the area of a rectangle?

• A. Area = 2 × (length + width)
• B. Area = Length x width
• C. Area = (length + width)/2
• D. Area = length × length

Answer: (B)

The formula for the area of a rectangle is determined by the multiplication of its length and width. When you multiply the length by the width, you effectively calculate how many square units can fit within that rectangle. This is because area measures the amount of two-dimensional space contained within a shape. For a rectangle, both dimensions—length and width—are needed to find the total area because the rectangle can be visualized as being made up of rows of squares. For example, if a rectangle is 4 units long and 3 units wide, the area is computed as 4 × 3, which equals 12 square units. This representation directly correlates with the definition of area in geometry. The other formulations provided do not accurately calculate the area of a rectangle. One choice involves adding the length and width, which does not yield a measure of area, while another suggests dividing their sum by 2, implying an average rather than a total area. Additionally, the last choice erroneously describes the area in terms of the length multiplied by itself, which reflects the calculation for the area of a square, not a rectangle.

The formula for the area of a rectangle is determined by the multiplication of its length and width. When you multiply the length by the width, you effectively calculate how many square units can fit within that rectangle. This is because area measures the amount of two-dimensional space contained within a shape.

For a rectangle, both dimensions—length and width—are needed to find the total area because the rectangle can be visualized as being made up of rows of squares. For example, if a rectangle is 4 units long and 3 units wide, the area is computed as 4 × 3, which equals 12 square units. This representation directly correlates with the definition of area in geometry.

The other formulations provided do not accurately calculate the area of a rectangle. One choice involves adding the length and width, which does not yield a measure of area, while another suggests dividing their sum by 2, implying an average rather than a total area. Additionally, the last choice erroneously describes the area in terms of the length multiplied by itself, which reflects the calculation for the area of a square, not a rectangle.