Grade 5 Geometry: Classifying Quadrilaterals

Worked examples

Real problems from the practice worksheets, solved one step at a time.

1. Example 1

   How many of these properties are true for EVERY rhombus: at least one pair of parallel sides, opposite sides of equal length, 4 sides, and 2 pairs of parallel sides?

   1. Check each property against what EVERY rhombus has.
   2. at least one pair of parallel sides — yes; opposite sides of equal length — yes; 4 sides — yes; 2 pairs of parallel sides — yes.
   3. So 4 of the properties are true for every rhombus.

   Answer: 4

2. Example 2

   A quadrilateral has opposite sides parallel and no right angles. Two sides are 8 ft long and two sides are 5 ft long. What is its most specific name?

   1. Both pairs of opposite sides are parallel, so it is a parallelogram.
   2. It has no right angles, so it is not a rectangle, and its sides are not all the same length (8 ft and 5 ft), so it is not a rhombus.
   3. Its most specific name is parallelogram.

   Answer: parallelogram

3. Example 3

   A rhombus has 4 right angles. What is its most specific name?

   1. It has 4 right angles (square corners), so it is a rectangle.
   2. All 4 sides are the same length, so it is also a rhombus.
   3. A rectangle that is also a rhombus is a square — its most specific name is square.

   Answer: square