Chapter 32

Geometry

This chapter is different from the others. The other topic chapters (Algebra, Fractions, Decimals, Percents, Number Properties, and Word Problems) are broken down into content areas (exponents, quadratic equations, etc.). This chapter provides a more general approach for Geometry questions, classified not by content area (e.g., Circles, Polygons), but by format.

Success on Geometry Quantitative Comparison (QC) questions will still be largely determined by your knowledge of the rules and formulas associated with all the shapes tested on the GRE. This chapter offers a practical approach to correctly applying these rules and formulas to every QC question, regardless of the shape or shapes being tested.

This chapter is broken down as follows:

1. How to deal with Shape Geometry questions that include a diagram:
   1. What to do when Quantity B contains a number.
   2. What to do when Quantity B contains an unknown, such as a variable or an angle shown in the diagram.
2. How to deal with Word Geometry questions that do not include a diagram.

The following three-step process for tackling Geometry QC questions will be emphasized:

1. Establish what you need to know.
2. Establish what you know.
3. Establish what you don’t know.