Foot – Definition With Examples

We measure the objects in our daily lives. We use different units to measure the shape of an object like meters, centimeters, inches, feet, etc. It depends on the size or shape of the object to find the appropriate unit of measurement. For example: cm is the appropriate unit of measurement for measuring the height of a pencil. Similarly, to measure the height of a chair, foot is the appropriate unit of measurement.

There are two systems of measurement: the metric system and the imperial system. 

The metric system includes meters, centimeters, etc., whereas the imperial system includes foot, inches, yards, etc. 

Definition of Foot

A foot is a unit to measure the length or distance in the US. “Foot” refers to a single unit of measurement whereas “feet” is its plural alternative. 

The abbreviation used for foot or feet is ft and the symbol used is ‘. For example, a bag that is 1 foot long can be written as 1 ft or 1’.

Relationship between Foot and Inch

$1$ foot $= 12$ inches

or in other words, $1$inch $= 1/12$ feet

For example, if a toy is $24$ inches in height, it’s height in ft $= 24$ $1/12$$ = 2$ feet.

Inches to Feet and Feet to Inches

Sometimes, while converting measurements from inches to feet, we get the quotient in decimals. Instead of converting the quantity in decimals, we prefer to find the value in feet and inches. 

For example: 

70 inches $= 5$ feet and 10 inches because when we divide 70 by 12, we get 5 as the quotient and 10 as the remainder. The remainder value in the division will be written as it is in inches. 

Let us look at one more example:

$49$ inches to feet $= (49 \div 12) ft = 4$ feet and $1$ inch

Relationship between Feet and Yard

$1$ yard $= 3$ feet

or in another words, $1$ foot $= ⅓ $yard

For example: 

A park is 9 yards in length and we have to fence the length in feet. In order to get the length in feet, we will divide 9 by 3 so, we will get 3 ft.

Relationship between Feet and Meters

$1$ meter $≈ 3.28$ feet

or in another words, $1$ foot $≈ 0.3048$ meters

For example: 

The height of a wall is 3 m. The approximate height of the wall in foot $= 3 \times3.28 = 9.84$ feet.

Relationship between Feet and Centimeters

$1$ centimeter $≈ 0.0328$ feet

or in another words, $1$ foot $≈ 30.48$ cm

For example: 

The height of a door is 7 feet. So, the approximate height of the door in cm will be $7\times 30.48 = 213.36$ cm

Square Feet and Cubic Feet

Square Feet

Square feet is the amount of flat space that covers an area. If we want to calculate the area of an object or figure in square feet, we need the dimensions in feet. If we don’t have the dimensions in feet, we have to convert from the given units to feet.

For example: 

The length of a painting is 36 inches and breadth is 24 inches. What will be the area in square feet?

Length $= 36$ inches $= 3$ feet

Breadth $= 24R inches $= 2$ feet

Area $=$ length$\times$ breadth$ = 6$ square feet

Cubic Feet

Cubic feet is the unit to calculate the volume of a solid object. If we want the volume of a solid to be in cubic feet, we need the dimensions in feet as well. 

For example: 

Length of a room is $4$ ft, breadth is $3$ ft and height is $2$ ft. What will be the volume of the room?

Volume $=$ length$\times$ breadth$\times$ height $= 4 \times3 \times2 = 24$ cubic feet

Relationship between Square Feet and Square Inches

$1$ square inch $= \frac{1}{144}$ square feet

or, $1$ square foot $= 144$ square inches

For example: 

The area of a wall is $1728$ square inches. What will the area be in square feet?

$1$ square inch $= \frac{1}{144}$ square feet

$1728$ square inches $= \frac{1728}{144}$ square feet $= 12$ square feet

Relationship between Cubic Feet and Cubic Inches

$1$ cubic inch $= \frac{1}{1728}$ cubic feet

or, $1$ cubic foot $= 1728$ cubic inches

For example: 

The volume of the room is $13824$ cubic inches. What will the volume be in cubic feet?

$1$ cubic inch $= \frac{1}{1728}$ cubic feet

$13824$ cubic inches $= \frac{13824}{1728}$ cubic feet $= 8$ cubic feet

Solved Examples

Example 1. The length of a square is $8$ m. What is its length in feet? Round off your answer to two decimals.

Solution: $1$ m $= 3.2808$ feet

$8$ m $= 8\times 3.2808 = 26.2464$

On rounding off 26.2464 to the two decimals, we get 26.25 as 6 is greater than 5. 

Example 2. What will be the area of the triangle in square feet if the base of the triangle is 48 inches and height is 60 inches?

Solution: Base $= 48$ inches $= 48\times\frac{1}{12} = 4$ ft

Height $= 60$ inches $= 60\times\frac{1}{12} = 5$ ft

Area of triangle $= \frac{1}{2}\times4\times5 = 10$ square feet

Example 3. The distance between A and B is 20 feet and the distance between B and C is 12 m. What is the distance between A and C (in feet) by rounding off to one decimal?

Solution: Distance between A and B $= 20$ ft

Distance between B and C $= 12$ m

$1$ m $= 3.2808$ feet

$12 m = 12\times3.2808 = 39.3696 = 39.4$ ft (approx)

Distance between A and C $= 20 + 39.4 = 59.4$ ft

Practice Problems

Frequently Asked Questions