Article
Article
Area
Article By:
Frame, J. Sutherland Formerly, Department of Mathematics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.
Last reviewed:October 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.049300
The superficial contents of a geometrical figure of two dimensions. The area of any rectangle or square is the product of two adjacent sides, one of which may be called the base and the other the altitude. In general, any line segment that partially bounds a plane geometric figure may be called a base if its line does not separate the figure, and a perpendicular drawn to the base line from one of its points at greatest distance may be called the altitude. The area of a parallelogram is equal to the product of its base times its altitude. The area of a triangle is one-half the product of its base times its altitude. The area of a trapezoid is equal to one-half the product of the sum of its parallel sides (bases) times its altitude. Some area formulas are given in the table. See also: Euclidean geometry
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