2-dimensional shapes are flat. The perimeter of a 2D shape is the total distance around the outside of the shape. The area of a 2D shape is the space inside the shape.
Part of MathsGeometry and measure
The area of a 2D shape is the amount of space inside it. Examples of metric units of area are mm2, cm2, and m2.
This shape is drawn on a centimetre square grid.
Work out the area of the shape.
What is the area of this shape, if the area of each grid square is 1 cm2?
There are 10 squares contained in this shape.
The area of the shape is 10 cm2.
The area of each square is 1 cm2. There are 12 squares contained in this rectangle.
The area of the rectangle is 12 cm2.
The area of a rectangle can also be calculated using the following formula.
\(\text{Area of a rectangle} = \text{length (l)} \times \text{width (w)}\)
What is the total area of the field?
Area = \(10 \times 5 = 50~\text{m}^2\)
The area of a compound shape can be calculated by adding or subtracting the areas of the shapes it is made from.
Calculate the area of the compound shape.
Method 1
Break the shape into two squares and a rectangle.
Calculate the area of each shape.
\(4 \times 4 = 16~\text{cm}^2\), \(4 \times 4 = 16~\text{cm}^2\), \(4 \times 12 = 48~\text{cm}^2\)
Add the three areas together.
\(16 + 16 + 48 = 80~\text{cm}^2\)
Method 2
Calculate the area of the large rectangle.
\(8 \times (4 + 4 + 4) = 8 \times 12 = 96~\text{cm}^2\)
Calculate the area of the square which has been removed.
Subtract the area of this square from the rectangle.
\(96 - 16 = 80~\text{cm}^2\)