Calculate Rectangle Side Length: Given Area 24 cm² and Partial Measurements

Question

Shown below is the rectangle ABCD.

Given in cm:

AK = 5

DK = 4

The area of the rectangle is 24 cm².

Calculate the side AB.

S=24S=24S=24555444AAABBBCCCDDDKKK

Video Solution

Solution Steps

00:14 To start, we need to calculate the length of side A B.
00:19 First, we'll use the Pythagorean Theorem in triangle A D K to find side A D.
00:28 Let's substitute the given values to solve for A D.
00:46 Now, we need to isolate A D to find its length.
00:58 Great! We have found the length of side A D.
01:06 Next, let's calculate the area of the rectangle using the formula: side multiplied by side.
01:15 Substitute the known values to find side A B.
01:28 Now, let's isolate A B to determine its length.
01:38 And there you go! We've solved the problem.

Step-by-Step Solution

Let's look at triangle ADK in order to calculate side AD:

AD2+DK2=AK2 AD^2+DK^2=AK^2

Now let's substitute in our values:

AD2+42=52 AD^2+4^2=5^2

AD2+16=25 AD^2+16=25

We'll then move 16 to the other side and change the sign to the appropriate one:

AD2=2516 AD^2=25-16

AD2=9 AD^2=9

Next, we'll take the square root and get:

AD=3 AD=3

Since AD is a side of rectangle ABCD, we can calculate side AB as follows:

S=AB×AD S=AB\times AD

Let's substitute in our values:

24=3×AB 24=3\times AB

Finally, we'll divide both sides by 3:

AB=8 AB=8

Answer

8