Bernie Hawkins

GCSE Maths Revision

Shape and Space
11. Similarity and Congruency
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11. Similarity and Congruency

1. If two shapes are Congruent, what does that mean?
When mathematicians say that two shapes are congruent, it is just a posh, complicated way of
saying that those shapes are IDENTTICAL
They may have been flipped upside down and rotated around, but they are still exactly the
same shape and the same size

2. Congruent Triangles
Because triangles only have three sides, and we know that all their interior angles must add up
to 1800, we don't actually need to know every single piece of information about two triangles to
be able to say that they are congruent (identical).
There are 4 sets of criteria, and if a pair of triangles match any of these, then we can say for
definite that they are the exact same triangle, and so they are congruent!

1. Three Sides equal (SSS)

The lengths of all three sides are given in the question, and they are the same for both triangles

2. Two Sides and the included Angle equal (SAS)

Two sides are the same length, and the angle in between those two sides is the same size!

3. Two Angles and a corresponding Side equal (AAS)

Two angles are equal, and so too is a side in the same position relative to those two angles!

4. Right angle, Hypotenuse and Side (RHS)

The triangle has a right angle, and you know the length of the hypotenuse and another side!

3. Examples
When answering questions on congruent triangles, you must quote one of the above four
conditions if you believe a pair of triangles to be congruent:

4 cm
35o

120o

10 cm

8 cm

4 cm

These two
triangles are
congruent because
of AAS

120o
8 cm

13 cm
13 cm
5 cm
20o
12 cm

5 cm
These two
triangles are
congruent because
of RHS

4. If two shapes are Similar, what does that mean?

when mathematicians says that two objects are similar, they do not mean
thatUnfortunately,
they look a bit a like

They mean that one object is an enlargement of the other

Technically, to get from one object to the other you must multiply (or divide) every single
length
by the same number

Just like when we dealt with Enlargement, this number is called the Scale Factor!

5. Using Length Scale Factors

If we are told that two object are similar, and we can work out the scale factor, then it is
possible to work out a lot of unknown information about both objects
Example - These three shapes are similar. Find the missing values
18 cm

p cm
4 cm

To Find p:
Okay, so we know the
shapes are similar, so lets
work out the scale factor
between rectangles A and B:

48 16 3

q cm

48 cm

16 cm

So, we must enlarge every

length on Rectangle A by a
scale factor of 3 to get the
lengths of Rectangle B.
So, our missing length must
be:

4 3 12cm

To Find q:
Okay, so now lets
work out how to get
from Rectangle A to
Rectangle C

18 4 4.5

So now we have our

scale factor, its dead
easy to work out our
missing length:

16 4.5 72cm

6. Similar Triangles
For any other shape to be similar, all angles must be the same and all matching sides must be in
proportion
But because triangles are funny, all you need for similarity between two triangles is for all
three angles to be the same. Then you can be sure one triangle is an enlargement of the other
Example

Part (a)

(a) How do you know these two triangles are similar?

(b) Find the unknown lengths

35

3.4cm
0

2.5cm
250

7.5cm

1200

1200
6.3cm

To Find X

3.4 3 10.2cm

To Find Y

6.3 3 2.1cm

Two triangles are similar if all

their angles are the same
Well if you work out the
missing angle in the yellow
triangle it is 250, and the missing
angle in the green triangle is
350
So all the angles are the same,
so the triangles are similar!
And because they are similar, we
can work out the scale factor,
using our matching sides
between the 1200 and the 350

7.5 2.5 3
So, to get from one triangle to
the other, we either multiply or
divide by 3!

7. Area and Volume Factors

It is also possible for 3D shapes to be similar.
If we can work out the scale factor between their lengths of sides, we can also say that:
Area Factor
= Scale Factor2
Volume Factor = Scale Factor3
Okay, before we can do anything
we need to work out the length
scale factor in exactly the same
way as we always do:

Example - These two containers are similar. Work out

the volume of water the smaller one can hold

60 40 1.5
?

40 cm

20.25
litres

60 cm

So, if our length scale factor = 1.5

Volume Scale Factor = 1.53 = 3.375
So now we know how to get from
the big container to the small
container, so we can work out its
volume:

20.25 3.375 6 litres

Good luck with

your revision!