Trapezoids

Learn more about trapezoids and how to calculate their areas by using the trapezoid area formula.

Step by step guide to calculate the area of Trapezoids

• A quadrilateral with at least one pair of parallel sides is a trapezoid.
• Area of a trapezoid \(= \color{blue}{\frac{1}{2} h(b_{1}+b_{2})}\)
  

Example 1:

Calculate the area of the trapezoid.

Solution:

Use trapezoid area formula: \(A= \frac{1}{2} h(b_{1}+b_{2 }) \)
\(b_{1}=14 cm , b_{2}=18\) cm and \(h=20\) cm
Then: \(A= \frac{1}{2}(20)(14+18)=10(32)=320\) cm\(^2\)

Example 2:

Calculate the area of the trapezoid.

Solution::

Use trapezoid area formula: \(A= \frac{1}{2} h(b_{1}+b_{2 }) \)
\(b_{1}=12 cm , b_{2}=16\) cm and \(h=18\) cm
Then: \(A= \frac{1}{2}(18)(12+16)=9(28)=252\) cm\(^2\)

Exercises

Calculate the area for each trapezoid.

Download Trapezoids Worksheet

1. \(\color{blue}{28 \ cm^2}\)
2. \(\color{blue}{100 \ m^2}\)
3. \(\color{blue}{66 \ ft^2}\)
4. \(\color{blue}{96 \ cm^2}\)