Properties of Quadrilaterals

Parallelograms, rectangles, rhombi, squares, and trapezoids

Properties of Quadrilaterals

Parallelogram

A quadrilateral with both pairs of opposite sides parallel.

Properties:

  • Opposite sides are congruent
  • Opposite angles are congruent
  • Consecutive angles are supplementary
  • Diagonals bisect each other

Rectangle

A parallelogram with four right angles.

Additional properties:

  • All properties of parallelograms
  • Diagonals are congruent

Rhombus

A parallelogram with four congruent sides.

Additional properties:

  • All properties of parallelograms
  • Diagonals are perpendicular
  • Diagonals bisect the angles

Square

A parallelogram that is both a rectangle and a rhombus.

Properties:

  • Four congruent sides
  • Four right angles
  • Diagonals are congruent and perpendicular
  • Diagonals bisect the angles

Trapezoid

A quadrilateral with exactly one pair of parallel sides.

Parts:

  • Bases: the parallel sides
  • Legs: the non-parallel sides
  • Midsegment: connects midpoints of legs, length = b1+b22\frac{b_1 + b_2}{2}

Isosceles Trapezoid

A trapezoid with congruent legs.

Properties:

  • Base angles are congruent
  • Diagonals are congruent

📚 Practice Problems

1Problem 1easy

Question:

A parallelogram has one angle measuring 65°. Find the measures of the other three angles.

💡 Show Solution

Step 1: Recall properties of parallelograms:

  • Opposite angles are congruent
  • Consecutive angles are supplementary (add to 180°)

Step 2: Let's say angle A = 65°

Step 3: Find the opposite angle: Angle C = Angle A = 65° (opposite angles are equal)

Step 4: Find a consecutive angle: Consecutive angles are supplementary Angle B + Angle A = 180° Angle B + 65° = 180° Angle B = 115°

Step 5: Find the remaining angle: Angle D = Angle B = 115° (opposite angles are equal)

Step 6: Verify all angles sum to 360°: 65° + 115° + 65° + 115° = 360° ✓

Answer: The four angles are 65°, 115°, 65°, and 115°

2Problem 2easy

Question:

In parallelogram ABCD, A=65°\angle A = 65°. Find C\angle C.

💡 Show Solution

In a parallelogram, opposite angles are congruent.

Since A\angle A and C\angle C are opposite: C=A=65°\angle C = \angle A = 65°

Answer: C=65°\angle C = 65°

3Problem 3easy

Question:

A rectangle has a perimeter of 40 cm and a width of 8 cm. Find its length.

💡 Show Solution

Step 1: Recall rectangle properties:

  • Opposite sides are equal
  • All angles are 90°

Step 2: Use the perimeter formula: Perimeter = 2(length + width)

Step 3: Substitute known values: 40 = 2(length + 8)

Step 4: Solve for length: 40 = 2·length + 16 24 = 2·length length = 12

Step 5: Verify: Perimeter = 2(12 + 8) = 2(20) = 40 ✓

Answer: The length is 12 cm

4Problem 4medium

Question:

A trapezoid has bases of length 8 and 14. Find the length of the midsegment.

💡 Show Solution

The midsegment of a trapezoid equals the average of the bases:

M=b1+b22M = \frac{b_1 + b_2}{2}

M=8+142=222=11M = \frac{8 + 14}{2} = \frac{22}{2} = 11

Answer: The midsegment is 11

5Problem 5medium

Question:

The diagonals of a rhombus measure 16 cm and 12 cm. Find the length of one side of the rhombus.

💡 Show Solution

Step 1: Recall rhombus diagonal properties:

  • Diagonals bisect each other at right angles
  • Diagonals create four congruent right triangles

Step 2: Find half of each diagonal: Half of first diagonal = 16/2 = 8 cm Half of second diagonal = 12/2 = 6 cm

Step 3: Use Pythagorean Theorem: Each half-diagonal forms a leg of a right triangle The side of the rhombus is the hypotenuse

8² + 6² = side² 64 + 36 = side² 100 = side²

Step 4: Solve for the side: side = √100 side = 10 cm

Step 5: Verify using Pythagorean triple: This is a 6-8-10 triangle ✓

Answer: Each side of the rhombus is 10 cm

6Problem 6medium

Question:

A trapezoid has bases of 10 cm and 18 cm. The two legs are equal in length. If one base angle is 70°, find the other base angles.

💡 Show Solution

Step 1: Identify the trapezoid type: This is an isosceles trapezoid (equal legs)

Step 2: Recall isosceles trapezoid properties:

  • Base angles are congruent
  • The angles on each leg are supplementary

Step 3: Identify the given angle: One base angle = 70°

Step 4: Find the other angle on the same base: In an isosceles trapezoid, base angles are equal Other angle on that base = 70°

Step 5: Find angles on the other base: Angles on a leg are supplementary 70° + angle = 180° angle = 110°

Both angles on the other base = 110°

Step 6: Verify angle sum: 70° + 70° + 110° + 110° = 360° ✓

Answer: The four angles are 70°, 70°, 110°, and 110°

7Problem 7hard

Question:

In rhombus PQRS, diagonal PR = 16 and diagonal QS = 12. Find the length of one side of the rhombus.

💡 Show Solution

In a rhombus, diagonals are perpendicular and bisect each other.

The diagonals split the rhombus into 4 right triangles.

Half-diagonals:

  • Half of PR = 16/2=816/2 = 8
  • Half of QS = 12/2=612/2 = 6

Use Pythagorean Theorem: s2=82+62s^2 = 8^2 + 6^2 s2=64+36=100s^2 = 64 + 36 = 100 s=10s = 10

Answer: Each side is 10

8Problem 8hard

Question:

Quadrilateral ABCD has the following properties: AB ∥ CD, AB = CD, AD = BC, and all angles are 90°. Classify this quadrilateral as specifically as possible and justify your answer.

💡 Show Solution

Step 1: List the given properties:

  • AB ∥ CD (one pair of opposite sides parallel)
  • AB = CD (those parallel sides are equal)
  • AD = BC (other pair of opposite sides are equal)
  • All angles = 90°

Step 2: Check for parallelogram:

  • Opposite sides are parallel (AB ∥ CD, and AD ∥ BC implied)
  • Opposite sides are equal YES, it's a parallelogram ✓

Step 3: Check for rectangle:

  • It's a parallelogram with all right angles YES, it's a rectangle ✓

Step 4: Check for rhombus:

  • Need all four sides equal We have AB = CD and AD = BC But we don't know if AB = AD Not necessarily a rhombus

Step 5: Check for square:

  • Would need to be both rectangle AND rhombus
  • We confirmed rectangle
  • Need all sides equal for square Given info doesn't guarantee AB = AD Not necessarily a square

Step 6: Most specific classification: RECTANGLE is the most specific classification we can make

If we were also told AB = AD (or all sides equal), then it would be a SQUARE

Answer: This quadrilateral is a RECTANGLE. It's a parallelogram with all right angles, but we don't have enough information to prove all sides are equal (which would make it a square).