Question

If a right triangle has a hypotenuse of 13 inches and a leg of 5 inches, how could you use the Pythagorean Theorem to find the missing side? What is the length of the missing side? Show your work.

Answer 1

Answer:

The length of the missing side is 12.

Step-by-step explanation:

When you solve this, you do 5^2 + b^2 = 13^2

and solve for b. 25 + b^2 = 169

169 - 25 = 144

$\sqrt{144$ = 12

When you check your work, 5^2 + 12^2 = 13^2

25 + 144 = 169

If you have the right triangle, then you can label the longer side with 13, and label the leg 5. the you solve for the other leg. That's how Pythagorean Theorem is used in this context.

I hope this helped. I'm not the best at explaining math.