we have that
the total area is given
A=8(5)=40 in^2
so
40 in^2=24 in^2 +?
solve for ?
?=40-24=16 in^2
Remember that
the area of a rectangle is equal to
A=LW
where
L is the length and W is the width
the complete rectangle has L=8 in and W=5 in
calculate the area of complete rectangle
A=8(5)=40 in^2
the complete area is equal to adds 24 in^2 plus the area of ?
so
40=24+area?
area?=40-24
area=16 in^2
the area of ? is 16 square inches (16 in2 or 16 in^2)