In an algorithm to calculate the area of a rectangle, which operation completes Step 3 after measuring length and width?

In an algorithm to calculate the area of a rectangle, which operation completes Step 3 after measuring length and width?

• A. Add length to width
• B. Divide
• C. Subtract
• D. Multiply length by width

Answer: (D)

To find the area of a rectangle, you multiply its length by its width. Once you have both measurements, the operation that gives the amount of space inside the rectangle is multiplication because the area grows with both dimensions. Imagine tiling the rectangle with unit squares: the number of squares that fit is length × width, which is the area, and the units become square units (like square meters or square centimeters). Adding the measurements would only combine the two lengths, not the space inside. Subtracting would give how much one side exceeds the other, not area. Dividing would yield a ratio or scale, not the interior space. So multiplying length by width is the correct step to compute the area.

To find the area of a rectangle, you multiply its length by its width. Once you have both measurements, the operation that gives the amount of space inside the rectangle is multiplication because the area grows with both dimensions. Imagine tiling the rectangle with unit squares: the number of squares that fit is length × width, which is the area, and the units become square units (like square meters or square centimeters).

Adding the measurements would only combine the two lengths, not the space inside. Subtracting would give how much one side exceeds the other, not area. Dividing would yield a ratio or scale, not the interior space. So multiplying length by width is the correct step to compute the area.