<h3>
Answer: A) 4</h3>
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For any triangle with sides a,b,c we can say that the third side c is bound by this restriction
b-a < c < b+a
where 'a' and 'b' are known values, and 'b' is the larger value. So in this case we know that a = 8 and b = 12 making this inequality
b-a < c < b+a
12-8 < c < 12+8
4 < c < 20
The unknown missing side is between 4 and 20, not including either endpoint. This means c cannot equal 4, and c cannot equal 20 either.
Since c = 4 is not possible, this points to choice A as the answer
The other values 12, 8 and 16 are all in the range from 4 to 20, so they are valid possible lengths for c.
note: I'm using the triangle inequality theorem