Suppose that the width of a square is three times the width of second square. How do the areas of the squares compare? why?

Question

Suppose that the width of a square is three times the width of second square.

How do the areas of the squares compare? why?

 

Answer 1

If the side of the second square is a, its area is a².  If the first square has sides of length 3a, its area is 9a², or 9 times the area of the second square.

 

If the first square were a floor to be tiled, it would take 9 tiles the size of the second square to cover it.