Last updated on June 21st, 2020
There are few ways to find the area of triangle but the most common way to find the area of a triangle is to take half of the base times the height. There are different formulas for finding the area of a triangle, depending on what information you know.
A triangle is half as big as the rectangle that surrounds it, which is why the area of a triangle is one-half base times height.
The area of a triangle is the interior space enclosed by its three straight sides. Though always triangle-shaped, it is measured in square units.
The base of a triangle is the side used to create the altitude, or height.
The altitude or height is the perpendicular of the triangle from that base.
Using the Base and Height
The base is one side of the triangle. The height is the measure of the tallest point on a triangle. It is found by drawing a perpendicular line from the base to the opposite vertex.
The formula is Area = 1⁄2bh where “b” is the length of the triangle’s base, and “h” is the height of the triangle. Plug the base and height into the formula. Multiply the two values together, then multiply their product by1⁄2. This will give you the area of the triangle in square units.
How to find the area of a right triangle
Two sides of a right triangle are perpendicular, one of the perpendicular sides will be the height of the triangle. The other side will be the base. If the height and/or base is unstated, you are given them if you know the side lengths. Thus you can use the Area = 1⁄2bh formula to find the area.