Due in 1 hour! the length of a rectangle is 5 centimeters less than its width. what are the dimensions of the rectangle if its area is 266 square centimeters? in need to find the length and width

The equation for area of a rectangle is: a = lw (length times width)

x(x-5) = 266

x^2 - 5x = 266

x^2 - 5x - 266 = 0

We can apply the quadratic formula to get the 2 answers which solve the problem

The two answers are 19 and -14. Because measurement can't be negative, the positive value of 19, which is the width.

The length is 5 centimeters less.

19 - 5 = 14 centimeters

The width is 19 centimeters and the length is 14 centimeters, even though the width is usually said to be the smaller number.