Two polygons are congruent if they have the same shape. This means that

  • they have the same number of sides,

  • all corresponding sides are congruent, and

  • all corresponding interior angles are congruent.

Consider the two polygons \mathcal{P} and \mathcal{Q} below. Are they congruent?

Let's check these criteria for our polygons \mathcal{P} and \mathcal{Q}. We can see that both polygons have 3 sides, and \begin{align*} \overline{AB} &\cong \overline{XY}\,, & \overline{AC} &\cong \overline{XZ}\,, & \overline{BC} &\cong \overline{YZ}\,, \\[5pt] \angle{X} &\cong \angle{A} \,, & \angle{Y} &\cong \angle{B} \,, & \angle{Z} &\cong \angle{C} \,. \end{align*} Therefore, the polygons are congruent, and we can write ABC \cong XYZ.

The order in which we write the symbols is important: the corresponding vertices have to be in the same order.

We can also write \mathcal{P} \cong \mathcal{Q}.

FLAG

Are the polygons \mathcal{P} and \mathcal{Q} below congruent?

EXPLANATION

In general, congruent polygons have the same shape. In other words:

  • they have the same number of sides,

  • all corresponding sides are congruent, and

  • all corresponding interior angles are congruent.

\mathcal{P} and \mathcal{Q} have the same shape: They have congruent corresponding sides and congruent corresponding angles. This implies that \mathcal{P} \cong \mathcal{Q}.

FLAG

Given the polygon $\mathcal{P}$ shown above, which of the following polygons is congruent to $\mathcal{P}?$

a
b
c
d
e

Given the polygon $\mathcal{P}$ shown above, which of the following polygons is congruent to $\mathcal{P}?$

a
b
c
d
e

Which of the following statements are true for the polygons \mathcal{A}, \mathcal{B}, and \mathcal{C} shown below?

  1. \mathcal{A}\cong\mathcal{B}
  2. \mathcal{B}\cong\mathcal{C}
  3. \mathcal{C}\cong\mathcal{A}
EXPLANATION

In general, congruent polygons have the same shape. In other words:

  • they have the same number of sides,

  • all corresponding sides are congruent, and

  • all corresponding interior angles are congruent.

With that in mind, let's compare the given polygons.

  • Statement I is true. Since the polygons \mathcal{A} and \mathcal{B} have the same number of sides and all corresponding sides and angles are congruent, we conclude that \mathcal{A}\cong\mathcal{B}.

  • Statement II is false. Notice that the polygons \mathcal{B} and \mathcal{C} have the same number of sides, but they don't seem to have the same shape. In particular, we notice they don't have corresponding congruent angles ( \mathcal{B} does not have right angles, while \mathcal{C} does).

  • Statement III is false. By the same reasoning as above, we can see that the polygons \mathcal{C} and \mathcal{A} are not congruent.

Therefore, the correct answer is "I only."

FLAG

Which of the following statements are true for the polygons $\mathcal{P}$, $\mathcal{Q}$ and $\mathcal{R}$ shown above?

  1. $\mathcal{P}\cong\mathcal{Q}$
  2. $\mathcal{Q}\cong\mathcal{R}$
  3. $\mathcal{P}\cong\mathcal{R}$
a
I only
b
I and II only
c
I and III only
d
III only
e
II and III only

Given the polygons shown above, which of the following statements are true?

  1. $\mathcal{R}\cong\mathcal{S}$
  2. $\mathcal{S}\cong\mathcal{T}$
  3. $\mathcal{T}\cong\mathcal{R}$
a
II and III only
b
II only
c
I and III only
d
I and II only
e
III only

Write down a correct congruence statement for the quadrilaterals shown in the diagram above.

EXPLANATION

First, notice that \angle A \cong \angle C.

Let's determine the vertices in the second quadrilateral that correspond to A. First, notice the following:

\begin{align} AB &=XY \\ AD &= XW \\ \angle A &\cong \angle X \end{align}

Therefore,

  • vertex A corresponds to vertex X, and

  • vertex C corresponds to vertex Z (since C is opposite A and Z is opposite X ).

As for the other two vertices, notice we have two more pairs of congruent angles:

\begin{align} \angle B &\cong \angle Y\\ \angle D &\cong \angle W. \end{align}

Similarly, we have two more pairs of congruent sides:

\begin{align} CD &= ZW\\ BC &= YZ \end{align}

Therefore,

  • vertex B corresponds to Y, and

  • vertex D corresponds to W.

Finally, we conclude that a correct congruence statement is

ABCD \cong XYZW .

FLAG

What is a correct congruence statement for the quadrilaterals shown in the diagram above?

a
$ ABCD \cong MLKN$
b
$ ABCD \cong MNKL$
c
$ ABCD \cong KLMN$
d
$ ABCD \cong NMLK$
e
$ ABCD \cong KNML$

What is a correct congruence statement for the triangles shown in the diagram above?

a
$ \triangle ABD \cong \triangle FHE$
b
$ \triangle ABD \cong \triangle HEF$
c
$ \triangle ABD \cong \triangle HFE$
d
$ \triangle ABD \cong \triangle EFH$
e
$ \triangle ABD \cong \triangle EHF$

Given that ABCDE \cong PQRST, find x+y.

EXPLANATION

The statement ABCDE \cong PQRST means that \mathcal R and \mathcal Q are congruent. Moreover,

  • vertex A corresponds to vertex P,

  • vertex B corresponds to vertex Q,

  • vertex C corresponds to vertex R,

  • vertex D corresponds to vertex S,

  • vertex E corresponds to vertex T.

Therefore,

\begin{align*} CD&=RS\\[3pt] x &= 2. \end{align*}

Also, we have

\begin{align*} m\angle A &= m\angle P \\[3pt] 82^\circ &= (11y+5)^\circ \\[3pt] 77 &= 11y \\[3pt] 7 &= y. \end{align*}

Finally, x+y = 2+7=9.

FLAG

Consider the polygons $\mathcal{P}$ and $\mathcal{Q}$ shown above. Given that $ABCD\cong EFGH,$ what is the perimeter of $\mathcal{Q}?$

a
$36$
b
$16$
c
$42$
d
$52$
e
$44$

Given that $ABCD \cong EFGH,$ find $y-x.$

a
$14$
b
$11$
c
$13$
d
$10$
e
$12$
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