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I apologise for the really basic question. This didn't really fit on any other StackExchange website so the Maths one was the closest one where I could ask.

Really Basic Question- What are 4 sided shapes called again?

Like how triangles are 3 sided shapes, octagons are 8 sided shapes, ... What are the 4 sided ones called then?

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    Kinda weird - triangle, quadrilateral, pentagon, ... In Germany, we just say Dreieck, Viereck, Fünfeck (three-edge, four-edge, five-edge) ;)2010-09-22
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    I Am Not A German -- but shouldn't that be three-corner, four-corner, five-corner?2010-09-22
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    @TonyK: Why? For any shape where each corner (or vertex) meets exactly 2 edges, you're going to have the same number of edges as the number of corners, so it doesn't matter which one you count. Even this question is termed in "number of sides" which are edges.2010-09-22
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    Um...'Eck' means 'corner'.2010-09-22

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The word quadrilateral is made of the words quad (meaning "four") and lateral (meaning "of sides").

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Shorter version is "quadrangle".

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    Or even shorter, "tetragon".2010-09-22
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    Wouldn't "tetragon" imply equality of angles?2010-09-22
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    Only of its regular.2010-09-22
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Wait, never mind. It's quadrilateral. :)

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I have a draft article where I 'should' use 'quadrilateral' dozens of times. I refuse, stating up front that I will use 'quad' instead.

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    As long as I was in that position, I would be tempted to use something ridiculous, like "fourgon".2010-09-22
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    @Neil de B: I am guided by two principles which are somewhat in conflict here - 1) to use standard terminology, and 2) to avoid overburdening the reader. Following (2), I shorten 'quadrilateral' to 'quad'. And it doesn't trample (1), as it's just shorthand, and not likely to cause confusion.2010-09-22