The question on how many sides does a polygon have actually depends on the kind of polygon. Polygon came from the words ‘poly’ and ‘gon’, which means ‘many’ and ‘angles’ respectively. A figure with many sides is therefore called a polygon. A polygon can have more than three but finite sides. A polygon is made up of vertices and its body. Vertices are points where lines meet while the body is the space inside the polygon.
Before discussing how many sides a polygon has, it would be good to present and describe the different characteristics of polygons. Polygons can be characterized based on its convexity, symmetry and miscellaneous. Polygons can be convex and non convex. Polygons with equal angles are called equiangular polygons while polygons where all corners are on a single circle are called cyclic polygons. Rectilinear polygons are those whose sides form 90 or 270 degrees.
Polygons are usually taught in elementary and high school. The question on how many sides does a polygon have can even be answered by these students. If you still on the verge of learning all these, then this might actually help you determine how many sides a polygon have. There are numerous polygons, from polygons with three sides to polygons with fifty or even a hundred sides.
All these are possible and each of them actually has names. Of course, you don’t really need to memorize its entire name for you to pass high school. Still, knowing the basics and the names of polygons with at least 20 sides can be necessary.
Polygons are also characterized based on their sides. This includes Regular polygon, Convex polygon, Concave polygon, Equiangular polygon and Crossed polygon. Polygons are not just seen on textbooks, but are also seen in nature. Notice how your table, notebook, house, computer, television, cell phone and even a piece of rock constitute a polygon. Drawing or constructing polygons are also used in making 3-D characters.
How many sides does a polygon have? Here is a list of the names of different polygons and their respective number of sides.
| Name of Polygon | Number of Sides |
| Triangle | It has 3 sides |
| Quadrilateral | It has 4 sides |
| Pentagon | It has 5 sides |
| Hexagon | It has 6 sides |
| Heptagon | It has 7 sides |
| Octagon | It has 8 sides |
| Nonagon | It has 9 sides |
| Decagon | It has 10 sides |
| Hendecagon | It has 11 sides |
| Dodecagon | It has 12 sides |
| Tridecagon/Triskaidecagon | It has 13 sides |
| Tetradecagon | It has 14 sides |
| Pentadecagon | It has 15 sides |
| Hexadecagon | It has 16 sides |
| Heptadecagon | It has 17 sides |
| Octadecagon | It has 18 sides |
| Nonadecagon | It has 19 sides |
| Icosagon | It has 20 sides |
| Triacontagon | It has 30 sides |
| Tetracontagon | It has 40 sides |
| Pentacontagon | It has 50 sides |
Still wondering how many sides does a polygon have? Wonder no more because all you need to do is read the article and you will know the answer. Make sure to read carefully and know how many sides does a polygon have.