Which property defines a rectangle?

Which property defines a rectangle?

• A. It has four right angles and opposite sides parallel and equal.
• B. All sides are equal.
• C. Diagonals are perpendicular.
• D. It has only one pair of parallel sides.

Answer: (A)

Rectangles are quadrilaterals with four right angles. That single feature ensures every angle is 90 degrees and also implies opposite sides run parallel and have the same length. Describing a rectangle as having four right angles and opposite sides parallel and equal captures the essential shape: right angles define the rectangle, and the parallel/opposite-side relationships follow from that right-angle structure, making it a parallelogram too. Other ideas don’t define a rectangle: all sides equal points to a square or rhombus rather than a rectangle; diagonals perpendicular belong to a rhombus or kite, not the typical rectangle (diagonals in a rectangle are equal in length, but not perpendicular unless it’s a square); only one pair of parallel sides describes a trapezoid, not a rectangle.

Rectangles are quadrilaterals with four right angles. That single feature ensures every angle is 90 degrees and also implies opposite sides run parallel and have the same length. Describing a rectangle as having four right angles and opposite sides parallel and equal captures the essential shape: right angles define the rectangle, and the parallel/opposite-side relationships follow from that right-angle structure, making it a parallelogram too.

Other ideas don’t define a rectangle: all sides equal points to a square or rhombus rather than a rectangle; diagonals perpendicular belong to a rhombus or kite, not the typical rectangle (diagonals in a rectangle are equal in length, but not perpendicular unless it’s a square); only one pair of parallel sides describes a trapezoid, not a rectangle.