Technical English - Surfaces and Angles
Technical English - Surfaces and Angles
Vocabulary
Reading
A line has only one dimension: length (l). For example, a line from point A to point B has a length of 4
centimeters (cm). An arc is also a one dimensional shape. It is a curved line between two points.
Some shapes have two dimensions: length and height (h). Squares, rectangles, triangles and circles
are two dimensional shapes. The length around most shapes is perimeter but the length around a
circle is the circumference. The width of a circle is the diameter. The length from the center to the
edge of the circle is called the radius (r).
The space between two lines is an angle. Squares and rectangles have four angles of 90 degrees. The
sign for the degree is a small o above the line. Some triangles have a 90 o angle. These are called right-
angled triangles. The sign for a right angle in a triangle is a small square. The sign for any other angle
is a curved line.
Two dimensional shapes have area. The formula for the area of a rectangle is (length) x (height). For
example, a rectangle 4 cm x 3 cm has an area of 12 square centimeters (cm2). The formula for the
area of a triangle is (½) x (length or base) x (height). For example, a triangle with the base 4 cm and
height 3 cm has an area (½) x (4) x (3) = 6 cm 2. In the right angled triangle, we could state the
theorem as a2=b2+c2 where a is the hypotenuse.
The formula for the area of a circle is πr2, where π, pronounced pi, is a constant – roughly 3.142. The
area of a circle of radius 4 cm is (3.142) x (4 2)= 50.272 cm2. We use π to calculate the length of the
circumference too. The formula is 2πr. So, the circumference of the same circle of radius 4 cm is (2) x
(3.142) x (4) = 25.136 cm.
a. the shortest edge b. the right angle c. the longest edge d. an arc
5. If the right-angled triangle has a base of 4 and a height of 5, what is the hypotenuse?
a. √ 41 b. √ 20 c. 41 d. √ 9