To find the area of a quadrilateral, we generally need more specific information about its shape, as the formula for the area can vary based on whether it is a rectangle, square, trapezoid, parallelogram, etc.
However, if you have a specific quadrilateral type in mind with side lengths 12 inches and 16 inches, please provide more details (such as angles, or if it has right angles) so I can assist you better.
For example, if the quadrilateral is a rectangle with length 16 inches and width 12 inches, the area would be calculated as: \[ \text{Area} = \text{length} \times \text{width} = 16 , \text{in} \times 12 , \text{in} = 192 , \text{in}^2. \]
If you can specify the type of quadrilateral or provide additional information, that would help in calculating the correct area.