What is a sphere?
A sphere is a perfectly round 3D shape, like a ball, where every point on the outside is the same distance from the centre.
The answer
A sphere has 1 face, 0 edges and 0 vertices.
Sphere diagram and properties
| Property | Count |
|---|---|
| Faces1 curved face | 1 |
| Flat faces | 0 |
| Curved faces | 1 |
| Edges | 0 |
| Vertices (corners) | 0 |
Most primary schools count its round surface as a curved face. Some books say 1 curved surface and 0 faces, because they only count flat faces. Both describe the same shape.
Key facts about the sphere
- It has no edges and no vertices.
- It rolls in every direction.
- Cut a sphere in half and each half is a hemisphere, with 1 flat circle face and 1 curved face.
Where you see it
A football, a marble, a bubble and an orange (nearly).
The common mistake
Calling a sphere a circle. A circle is flat, a 2D shape. A sphere is solid, a 3D shape: a circle is what you see when you draw one.
An 11+ style question
Which 3D shape has no edges and no vertices?
Answer: A sphere
- A cylinder has 2 edges and a cone has 1 edge where a curved face meets a flat face.
- A sphere has only one curved face, so nothing meets anything: 0 edges and 0 vertices.
Related shapes and skills
More shapes
Questions parents ask
How many faces, edges and vertices does a sphere have?
A sphere has 1 face, 0 edges and 0 vertices. Of all shapes that hold the same amount of space, a sphere has the smallest surface. That is why bubbles and raindrops pull themselves into round shapes.
Is a circle a sphere?
No. A circle is a flat 2D shape and a sphere is a solid 3D shape. A sphere looks like a circle when you draw it on paper.
Shape questions are quick marks in the 11+
Angles, symmetry, nets and 3D shapes come up in 11+ maths and non-verbal reasoning. The free diagnostic checks maths, English and both kinds of reasoning, and shows what to practise next. No card is required.