What is perimeter?

The word 'perimeter' comes from two Greek words; peri, meaning 'around', and metron, meaning 'measure'. So perimeter means the measure or distance around something. It is the length around the edge.

The perimeter of a straight-sided two-dimensional shape is the sum of the lengths of its sides.

So we can calculate the perimeter of this shape:		Detailed description
Perimeter	= 8 m + 8 m + 1 m + 2 m + 7 m + 6 m = 32 m
We can calculate the perimeter of this square:
P	= 8 m + 8 m + 8 m + 8 m = 32 m
We can calculate the perimeter of this rectangle:
P	= 2 m + 14 m + 2 m + 14 m = 32 m
We can calculate the perimeter of this octagon:
P	= 4 m + 4 m + 4 m + 4 m + 4 m + 4 m + 4 m + 4 m = 32 m
We can calculate the perimeter of this triangle:
P	= 7 m + 12 m + 13 m = 32 m

You might have noticed that the different shapes have the same perimeter.