Introduction

A quadrilateral is a four-sided shape. There are many different types of quadrilaterals, and it’s important to know which type you are working with so that you can be sure what properties apply to your shape. Below are some examples of commonly used quadrilaterals:

A square has four equal sides.

A square is a quadrilateral that has four equal sides and four right angles. A rectangle with equal sides is also called a square; however, if the sides are not equal, then it’s not technically a square (but it can still be used as one). The same goes for a rhombus–it has four equal sides and four equal angles!

A rectangle with equal sides is a square.

A square is a rectangle with all four sides equal.

A square has four equal sides and four equal angles. A rectangle can be a square, but a square is not always a rectangle.

A rectangle with unequal sides is not a square.

A square has four equal sides, but it can have any number of angles. A rectangle with two pairs of equal sides is not a square because it only has one pair of opposite angles that are the same size and shape–the other two pairs are different sizes and shapes than each other, which makes them unequal angles (and therefore unequal).

A rhombus has four equal sides and four equal angles.

A rhombus has four sides that are all the same length, and each vertex (corner) is equidistant from the other three vertices. In other words, if you were to draw a straight line from one vertex to another on your paper, then it would be exactly the same distance as every other line drawn between two different vertices in this shape.

A parallelogram can be a rhombus or a kite, but both are quadrilaterals.

A quadrilateral is a polygon with four sides. A parallelogram has four right angles and two pairs of congruent adjacent sides, but it may also have a pair of opposite angles that are not congruent; these are called kites or rhombi.

In other words, a parallelogram can be either:

• A rhombus (or diamond) – where all four angles are equal to 90 degrees

or

• A kite – where two pairs of opposite angles are equal

A kite has two pairs of congruent adjacent sides that form right angles, and two pairs of acute or obtuse adjacent angles (and two acute or obtuse adjacent sides).

A kite is a quadrilateral with four sides and four angles. A kite has two pairs of congruent adjacent sides that form right angles, and two pairs of acute or obtuse adjacent angles (and two acute or obtuse adjacent sides).

Takeaway:

A kite is a quadrilateral with four sides of equal length. A kite has two pairs of opposite sides that are perpendicular and two pairs of opposite angles that are congruent.

These are just a few of the many shapes that can be formed with four equal sides. There are also rectangles and parallelograms with unequal sides, as well as kites and rhombuses.