Ratio in similar shapes: lengths, areas and volumes worksheet — GCSE Foundation

1.A furniture maker builds two mathematically similar bookcases. The smaller bookcase is 40 cm tall and uses 2 m² of wood. The larger bookcase is 60 cm tall. Work out the area of wood needed for the larger bookcase, giving your answer in m².

2.Two mathematically similar containers have a volume scale factor of 64 (the larger container's volume is 64 times the smaller container's volume). Work out the length scale factor between the two containers.

3.Two mathematically similar flags are made in different sizes. The length scale factor from the smaller flag to the larger flag is 5. Work out the area scale factor from the smaller flag to the larger flag.

4.Two mathematically similar hexagonal tiles have areas 18 cm² and 50 cm². Work out the ratio of the side length of the smaller tile to the side length of the larger tile, in simplest form.

5.Square P has sides of length 3 cm. Square Q has sides of length 12 cm. Write the ratio of the area of square P to the area of square Q in its simplest form.

6.Two mathematically similar rectangles have lengths in the ratio 3 : 5. The area of the smaller rectangle is 27 cm². Work out the area of the larger rectangle.

7.Two mathematically similar water bottles have a volume scale factor of 8 from the smaller bottle to the larger bottle. Work out the surface area scale factor from the smaller bottle to the larger bottle.

8.Triangle ABC has a right angle at C. AC = 3 cm and BC = 4 cm. Triangle ABC is mathematically similar to triangle PQR, with angle B corresponding to angle Q. Work out the value of tan(angle Q).

9.Two mathematically similar picture frames have perimeters 30 cm and 45 cm. The area of the smaller frame is 40 cm². Work out the area of the larger frame.

10.Two mathematically similar cubes have edge lengths 2 cm and 6 cm. Write the ratio of the volume of the smaller cube to the volume of the larger cube in its simplest form.

11.A garden centre sells two mathematically similar sacks of grass seed. The amount of lawn a sack can treat is proportional to the volume of seed inside it. The smaller sack is 20 cm tall and treats a lawn of area 30 m². The larger sack is 40 cm tall. A gardener needs to treat a lawn with an area of 500 m² using only the larger sacks. Work out the minimum number of larger sacks needed.

12.Two mathematically similar cylinders have heights in the ratio 3 : 4. Write the ratio of their volumes in its simplest form.

13.A toy manufacturer makes a model aircraft that is mathematically similar to the real aircraft, at a scale of 1 : 48. The wingspan of the model is 15 cm. Work out the wingspan of the real aircraft, giving your answer in metres.

14.Two mathematically similar garden ponds have surface areas of 12 m² and 27 m². The fencing needed to go around the smaller pond costs £96. Assuming the cost of fencing is proportional to the perimeter of the pond, work out the cost of fencing the larger pond.

15.Two mathematically similar polygons have perimeters in the ratio 2 : 5. Write the ratio of their areas in its simplest form.