From Latin: planus "flat, level," and Greek: geometrical "measurement of earth or land"

The study of geometry can be broken into two broad types: plane geometry, which deals with only two
dimensions, and and solid geometry which allows all three. The world around us is obviously threedimensional, having width, depth and height, Solid geometry deals with objects in that space such as
cubes and spheres.
Plane geometry deals in objects that are flat, such as triangles and lines, that can be drawn on a flat piece
of paper.

The Plane
In plane geometry, all the shapes exist in a flat plane. A plane can be thought of an a flat sheet with no
thickness, and which goes on for ever in both directions. It is absolutely flat and infinitely large, which
makes it hard to draw. In the figure above, the yellow area is meant to represent a plane. In the figure, it
has edges, but actually, a plane goes on for ever in both directions.
Objects which lie in the same plane are said to be 'coplanar'. See Defintion of coplanar.

Origins
Plane geometry, and much of solid geometry also, was first laid out by the Greeks some 2000 years
ago. Euclid in particular made great contributions to the field with his book "Elements" which was the first
deep, methodical treatise on the subject. In particular, he built a layer-by-layer sequence of logical steps,
proving beyond doubt that each step followed logically from those before.
Geometry is really about two things:
1. The objects and their properties. Analysis of things such as points, lines, triangles.
2. Proofs. A methodology for proving that the claims made about objects are really true.

Fun reading
Clearly, our world is three dimensional. But in the fictional story Flatland by Edwin Abbott, he speculates
what living in a two-dimensional world (a plane) would be like. It's a fun diversion from the strict factual

logic of mathematics. Surprisingly for a science fiction story, it was written in 1884, and his writing style is
quaintly Victorian as a result. An excerpt from Chapter 1:
..Imagine a vast sheet of paper on which straight Lines, Triangles, Squares, Pentagons, Hexagons, and
other figures, instead of remaining fixed in their places, move freely about, on or in the surface, but
without the power of rising above or sinking below it, very much like shadows ...
Read it online at "Flatland - A romance of many dimensions" by Edwin A. Abbott, a Square,1884;

Other line topics

Definition: A shape, formed by two lines or rays diverging from a common point (the vertex).
Try this Adjust the angle below by dragging the orange dot.

Attributes
Vertex

The vertex is the common point at which the two lines or rays are joined. Point B is the figure
above is the vertex of the angle ABC.

Legs

The legs (sides) of an angle are the two lines that make it up. In the figure above, the line
segments AB and BC are the legs of the angleABC.

Interior

The interior of an angle is the space in the 'jaws' of the angle extending out to infinity.
See Interior of an Angle

Exterio
r

All the space on the plane that is not the interior. See Interior of an Angle

Identifying an angle
An angle can be identified in two ways.
1. Like this: ABC
The angle symbol, followed by three points that define the angle, with the middle letter being the
vertex, and the other two on the legs. So in the figure above the angle would be ABC or CBA.
So long as the vertex is the middle letter, the order is not important. As a shorthand we can use
the 'angle' symbol. For example 'ABC' would be read as 'the angle ABC'.
2. Or like this: B
Just by the vertex, so long as it is not ambiguous. So in the figure above the angle could also be
called simply 'B'

Measure of an angle
The size of an angle is measured in degrees (see Angle Measures). When we say 'the angle ABC' we
mean the actual angle object. If we want to talk about the size, or measure, of the angle in degrees, we
should say 'the measure of the angle ABC' - often written mABC.
However, many times we will see 'ABC=34'. Strictly speaking this is an error. It should say
'mABC=34'

Types of angle
Altogether, there are six types of angle as listed below. Click on an image for a full description of that type
and a corresponding interactive applet.

Acute angle
Less than 90

Right angle
Exactly 90

Obtuse angle
Between 90 and 180

Straight angle
Exactly 180

Reflex angle
Between 180 and
360

Full angle
Exactly 360

In Trigonometry
When used in trigonometry, angles have some extra properties: They can have a measure greater than
360, can be positive and negative, and are positioned on a coordinate grid with x and y axes. They are
usually measured in radians instead ofdegrees. For more on this see Angle definition and properties
(trigonometry).

Angle construction
In the Constructions chapter, there are animated demonstrations of variousconstructions of angles using
only a compass and straightedge.

Copying an angle

Constructing a 30 angle

Constructing a 45 angle

Constructing a 60 angle

Constructing a 90 angle (perpendicular, right angle) at:

o

the end of a line segment

a point on a line segment

through a point not on a line segment

the midpoint of a a line segment

Definition: A shape, formed by two lines or rays diverging from a common point (the
vertex).
Try this Adjust the angle below by dragging the orange dot.

What kind of angle is shown in each of the diagrams below?

a)

b)

c)

d)

e)

f)

Area of a polygon (Coordinate Geometry)

A method for finding the area of any polygon when
the coordinates of itsvertices are known.
(See also: Computer algorithm for finding the area of any
polygon.)
First, number the vertices in order, going either clockwise or
counter-clockwise, starting at any vertex.

The area is then given by the formula

Where x1 is the x coordinate of vertex 1 and yn is the y

coordinate of the nth vertex etc. Notice that the in the last
term, the expression wraps around back to the first vertex
again.

Try it here
Adjust the quadrilateral ABCD by dragging any vertex. The
area is calculated using this method as you drag. A detailed
explanation follows the diagram.
The above diagram shows how to do this manually.
1. Make a table with the x,y coordinates of each
vertex. Start at any vertex and go around the
polygon in either direction. Add the starting vertex
again at the end. You should get a table that looks
like the leftmost gray box in the figure above.
2. Combine the first two rows by:
1. Multiplying the first row x by the second row
y. (red)
2. Multiplying the first row y by the second row
x (blue)
3. Subtract the second product form the first.
3. Repeat this for rows 2 and 3, then rows 3 and 4 and
so on.
4. Add these results, make it positive if required, and
divide by two.

Area calculator
See Polygon area calculator for a pre-programmed
calculator that does the arithmetic for you. Just enter the
coordinates.

Limitations

This method will produce the wrong answer

for self-intersecting polygons, where one side crosses over
another, as shown on the right. It will work correctly however
for triangles, regular andirregular
polygons, convex or concave polygons.

Things to try
In the above diagram, press 'reset' and 'hide details', then
try the following:
1. Drag the vertices of the polygon to create a new
shape. (Do not create a 'crossed' polygon, this
method does not work on those.)
2. Calculate the area using this method.
3. Click on 'show details' to check your answer.

quadrilateral where all interior angles are 90, and whose location on the coordinate
plane is deteample
The example below assumes you know how to calculate the distance between two points, as described
in Distance between Two Points. In the figure above, click 'reset' and 'show diagonals'

The height of the rectangle is the distance between the points A and B. (Using C,D will produce
the same result). Using the formula for the distance between two points, this is

Calculator

The width is the distance between the points B and C. (Using A,D will produce the same result).
Using the formula for the distance between two points, this is

The length of a diagonals is the distance between B and D. (Using A,C will produce the same
result). Using the formula for the distance between two points, this is

rmined by the coordinates of the four vertices(corners).

Square (Coordinate Geometry)

A 4-sided regular polygon with all sides equal, all
interior angles 90 and whose location on
the coordinate plane is determined by
the coordinatesof the four vertices (corners).

The example below assumes you know

how to calculate the distance between
two points, as described in Distance
between Two Points. In the figure above, Try this Drag any vertex of the square below. It will remain a
click 'reset', 'rotated' and 'show diagonals' square and its dimensions calculated from its coordinates. You
can also drag the origin point at (0,0), or drag the square itself.

The side length of the square is In coordinate geometry, a square is similar to an ordinary
the distance between any two
square (See Square definition ) with the addition that its
adjacentvertices. Let's pick B and position on the coordinate plane is known. Each of the four
C. Using the formula for the
vertices (corners) have known coordinates. From these
distance between two points:
coordinates, various properties such as width, height etc can be
found.
It has all the same properties as a familiar square, such as:

The length of a diagonals is the

distance between any pair of
opposite vertices. In a square,
the diagonal is also the length of
a side times the square root of
two:

All four sides are congruent

Opposite sides are parallel

The diagonals bisect each other at right angles

The diagonals are congruent

Calculator
See Square definition for more.
\

rapezoid (Coordinate Geometry)

A quadrilateral that has one pair of parallel sides,
and where the vertices have known coordinates.
Try this Drag any vertex of the trapezoid below. It will remain a
trapezoid. You can also drag the origin point at (0,0).
As in plane geometry, a trapezoid is a quadrilateral with one
pair of parallel sides. (See Trapezoid definition). In coordinate
geometry, each of the four vertices (corners) also have
known coordinates.

Altitude of a trapezoid
In the figure above, click on 'reset' then 'show altitude'. The
altitude is the perpendicular distance between the two bases

(parallel sides). To find this distance, we can use the methods

described in Distance from a point to a line. For the point, we
use any vertex, and for the line we use the opposite base. In
the figure above we have used the distance from point B to the
opposite base AD.
This method will work even if the trapezoid is rotated on the
plane, but if the sides of the trapezoid are parallel to the x and y
axes, then the calculations can be a little easier. The altitude is
then the difference in y-coordinates of any point on each base,
for example A and B.

rallelogram (Coordinate Geometry)

A quadrilateral with both pairs of opposite sides parallel and congruent, and whose location
on the coordinate plane is determined by thecoordinates of the four vertices (corners).
Try this Drag any vertex of the parallelogram below. It will remain a parallelogram and its dimensions
calculated from its coordinates. You can also drag the origin point at (0,0).
In coordinate geometry, a parallelogram is similar to an ordinary parallelogram (Seeparallelogram
definition ) with the addition that its position on the coordinate plane is known. Each of the four vertices
(corners) have known coordinates. From these coordinates, various properties such as its altitude can be
found.
It has all the same properties as a familiar parallelogram:

Opposite sides are parallel and congruent

The diagonals bisect each other

Opposite angles are congruent

See parallelogram definition for more.

Dimensions of a parallelogram
The dimensions of the parallelogram are found by calculating the distance between various corner points.
Recall that we can find the distance between any two points if we know their coordinates. (See Distance
between Two Points ) So in the figure above:

The height of the parallelogram is the distance between A and B (or C,D).

The width is the distance between B and C (or A,D).

The length of a diagonals is the distance between opposite corners, say B and D (or A,C since
the diagonals are congruent).

This method will work even if the parallelogram is rotated on the plane, as in the figure above. But if the
sides of the parallelogram are parallel to the x and y axes, then the calculations can be a little easier.
In the above figure uncheck the "rotated" box to create this condition and note that:

The height is the difference in y-coordinates of any top and bottom point - for example A and B.

The width is the difference in x-coordinates of any left and right point - for example B and D

Example
The example below assumes you know how to calculate the distance between two points, as described
in Distance between Two Points. In the figure above, click 'reset' and 'show diagonals'

The height of the parallelogram is the distance between the points A and B. (Using C,D will
produce the same result). Using the formula for the distance between two points, this
is

The width is the distance between the points B and C. (Using A,D will produce the same result).
Using the formula for the distance between two points, this is

The length of a diagonals is the distance between B and D. (Using A,C will produce the same
result). Using the formula for the distance between two points, this is