Question

The adjacent sides of a parallelogram are 10 m and 8 m. If the distance between the longer sides is 4 m, find the distance between the shorter sides.

Answer 1

We have,
ABCD is a parallelogram with side AB = 10 m and corresponding altitude AE = 4 m.
The adjacent side AD = 8 m and the corresponding altitude is CF.

Area of a parallelogram = Base × Height
We have two altitudes and two corresponding bases. So,
AD x CF = AB x AE
⇒ 8 m x CF = 10 m x 4 m

⇒ CF = $\frac{10\times 4}{8}=5\mathrm{m}$
Hence, the distance between the shorter sides is 5 m.