Names of IRREGULAR polygons and their classification

From a teacher we are happy to bring you a new lesson on polygons. In this case, we are going to talk about the names of irregular polygons and their classification. To finish the article, you will find a exercise with its respective solution, to verify that you have understood what was explained. These lessons will be very useful for a basic knowledge of mathematics and, specifically, of geometry.

Index

1. What are irregular polygons
2. Irregular polygon classification and names
3. Irregular polygons exercise
4. Exercise solution

The polygons are figures drawn in plane geometry with a certain number of sides that enclose a region of a plane in a finite way. Those sides that make up the segments of the figure are known as edges, and the point where two edges meet is called the vertex (or corner). In addition, two angles are generated at each vertex, one interior and one exterior, which are nothing more than the amplitude generated at the vertex.

As you will remember from the article Regular polygons: names and classification, the regular polygons They are those that have all their angles of the same amplitude and all their sides of the same length.

In this way, irregular polygons are those that do not meet this condition, that is, that have different angles amplitudes or sides of different lengths.

For this reason, we can find ourselves in one of these three situations:

• Sides of equal length, but angles of different amplitude.
• Sides of different lengths, but angles of the same width.
• Sides of different lengths and angles of different amplitude.

Irregular polygons, as you can imagine after reading their definition, can be very varied, so the classification it is not as visual and simple as that of regular polygons. Let's go to see her:

• 3 sides: non-equilateral triangles. Any triangle that has different sides will also have different angles, so it will be irregular. Therefore, scalene triangles, isosceles, rectangles... they are three-sided irregular polygons.
• 4 sides: they are called quadrilaterals and all those that are not square are irregular. In this way, the rectangle is 4-sided irregular polygons (as we already advanced in this article), the rhombus, the rhomboid, the trapezoids and the trapezoids.
• 5 sides: all those five-sided polygons that are not a regular pentagon will be pentagons irregular, whatever shape they are.
• 6 sides: As with the five-sided ones, the 6-sided ones will be irregular as long as they are not a regular hexagon, so any irregular hexagon it will be such a polygon.
• And so on.

Normally, the "irregular" surname is given to the polygon we are talking about, to make it clear that it is not a regular one.

For instance: irregular eneagon. We did the same with the regular polygons, to make sure they were. For this reason, if we simply read "pentagon", we cannot tell if it is a regular or an irregular one, although the name is commonly used for regular polygons.

If you have come this far, you are sure that you are quite clear about what irregular polygons are and how they are classified. Let's check it out with him next exercise:

1. Relate the name of the irregular polygon with its number of sides:

• 3 sides... diamond
• 4 sides... irregular heptagon
• 4 sides... irregular pentagon
• 4 sides... trapeze
• 5 sides... irregular hexagon
• 6 sides... scalene triangle
• 7 sides... rectangle

2. List all the irregular polygons you find in the following drawing of a garden:

Let's see the answer to the proposed exercises, to verify that you have done them correctly:

1.

• 3 scalene triangle
• 4 rhombus
• 4 rectangle
• 4 trapezoid
• 5 irregular pentagon
• 6 irregular hexagon
• 7 irregular heptagon

2.

There can be very different answers, as you can find many irregular polygons in the image. Some examples can be the rectangle that the door forms, the triangle that the sticks form the garden with the soil, the rhomboid on the roof, the triangle on the roof, the rectangle on the window... Among others.

If you found this lesson enriching, remember that you can browse the web using the search engine to find everything you need. In addition, we recommend the Geometry section, which is the one that we have expanded with this article.

If you want to read more articles similar to Irregular polygons: names and classification, we recommend that you enter our category of Geometry.