BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

In triangle ABC, side AB is 5 inches. . .

This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Post Reply
Previous Topic Next Topic
Legendary Member
Posts: 2898
Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2017 2:49 pm
Thanked: 6 times
Followed by:5 members

In triangle ABC, side AB is 5 inches. . .

by Vincen » Mon Sep 25, 2017 5:56 pm
In triangle ABC, side AB is 5 inches and side BC is 7 inches. What is the area of the triangle ABC?

(1) Angle ABC is 90 degrees
(2) Triangle ABC is a right triangle

The OA is A.

Why the statement (2) is not sufficient too? Both statements says almos the same. What is the difference?
Top
Source: — Data Sufficiency |

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 503
Joined: Thu Jul 20, 2017 9:03 am
Thanked: 86 times
Followed by:15 members
GMAT Score:770

by ErikaPrepScholar » Tue Sep 26, 2017 8:43 am
The trap in this question is that the test makers want you to think that the two statements say the same thing. But they actually don't!

Statement 1 tells us that Angle ABC is 90 degrees. This means that AB and BC are the base and height of the triangle and that AC is the hypothenuse. So to get the area, we use A = (1/2)bh = 1/2(5)(7). SUFFICIENT.

Statement 2 tells us that Triangle ABC has a 90 degree angle. However, it doesn't tell us which angle is 90 degrees: it could be ABC, ACB, or BAC. This means that we don't know if AB and BC are the base and height of the triangle. They might be! But AB could be the base and BC could be the hypotenuse. This would mean that the height of the triangle would *not* be 7, which would then change the area of the triangle. INSUFFICIENT.
Image

Erika John - Content Manager/Lead Instructor
https://gmat.prepscholar.com/gmat/s/

Get tutoring from me or another PrepScholar GMAT expert: https://gmat.prepscholar.com/gmat/s/tutoring/

Learn about our exclusive savings for BTG members (up to 25% off) and our 5 day free trial

Check out our PrepScholar GMAT YouTube channel, and read our expert guides on the PrepScholar GMAT blog
Top
Post new topic Post Reply
• Page 1 of 1