PSAT Math : How to find if two acute / obtuse triangles are similar

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for PSAT Math

varsity tutors app store varsity tutors android store

Example Questions

Example Question #1 : How To Find If Two Acute / Obtuse Triangles Are Similar

 and  are similar triangles.  The perimeter of Triangle A is 45” and the length of two of its sides are 15” and 10”.  If the perimeter of Triangle B is 135” and what are lengths of two of its sides?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The perimeter is equal to the sum of the three sides.  In similar triangles, each side is in proportion to its correlating side.  The perimeters are also in equal proportion.

Perimeter A = 45” and perimeter B = 135”

The proportion of Perimeter A to Perimeter B is

This applies to the sides of the triangle.  Therefore to get the any side of Triangle B, just multiply the correlating side by 3.

15” x 3 = 45”

10” x 3 = 30“

 

 

Screen shot 2016 02 16 at 10.45.30 am

Learning Tools by Varsity Tutors