Question the-le

4.1 Lines, Angles, and Triangles - Triangle inequality
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The lengths of two sides of a triangle are 4 centimeters and 6 centimeters. If the perimeter of the triangle is 18 centimeters, what is the length, in centimeters, of the third side of this triangle?

A.

2

B.

8

C.

10

D.

24

The lengths of two sides of a triangle are 4 centimeters and 6 centimeters. If the

Easy-difficulty · SAT Math · Lines, Angles, and Triangles — Triangle inequality. Read the question above, select your answer, and check the full explanation below to understand exactly why the correct choice works.

Answer explanation

Choice B is correct. The perimeter of a triangle is the sum of the lengths of all three of its sides. It's given that the lengths of two sides of a triangle are 4 centimeters and 6 centimeters. Let x represent the length, in centimeters, of the third side of this triangle. The sum of the lengths, in centimeters, of all three sides of the triangle can be represented by the expression 4+6+x. Since it’s given that the perimeter of the triangle is 18 centimeters, it follows that 4+6+x=18, or 10+x=18. Subtracting 10 from both sides of this equation yields x = 8 . Therefore, the length, in centimeters, of the third side of this triangle is 8 .

Choice A is incorrect. If the length of the third side of this triangle were 2 centimeters, the perimeter, in centimeters, of the triangle would be 4+6+2, or 12 , not 18 .

Choice C is incorrect. If the length of the third side of this triangle were 10 centimeters, the perimeter, in centimeters, of the triangle would be 4+6+10, or 20 , not 18 .

Choice D is incorrect. If the length of the third side of this triangle were 24 centimeters, the perimeter, in centimeters, of the triangle would be 4+6+24, or 34 , not 18 .