![]() ![]() When dealing with horizontal lines, the length of the line is simply the difference between the two points' x-coordinates. However, there's an easier way to do this. How about if we were to do horizontal or vertical lines? Would the distance formula work? The short answer is that it will. Make sure to simplify the answer so that certain numbers can be brought out from the radical symbol. Don't forget to square the differences between the X's and Y's, and you'll get a number under a square root. In the above, we consider B as point 2, and consistently use point 2's coordinates before A's in the formula. Simply plug in the numbers into the distance formula. We know that we'll be using both the x-values and the y-values. Question: What is the distance between A(4,2) and B(6,8)? Let's put the formula for distance into use with an example question. It's a good habit to have and if you leave it till the end, you may forget to put it back in and therefore get the wrong answer. That's the correct order in doing math problems, and holds true in the distance formula.ģ) Remember to write down the square root symbol. Then for the second part of the formula, make sure you're again using the y-value from point A and then subtracting the y-value from point B.Ģ) Simplify what is inside the parentheses before carrying out squaring. Ensure that you've matched them up properly in the right order, such that if you use a the x-value in point A, match it up with the x-value in point B when doing subtracting. Key things to remember when calculating for distance is:ġ)ĝo not mismatch your x and y values. The hypotenuse is the distance you're looking for between the two points! Now you've learned how the distance formula works. This makes use of the Pythagorean Theorem which we learned back when studying geometry. As long as you know where they are on a graph, you can plot them, then draw a right-angled triangle to help you find the length of its hypotenuse. This formula is always true and useful when you've got two points. Therefore, if we were to plug in the points of (x1, y1), and (x2, y2), then move the square over to the other side of the equation so that it becomes a square root, we'll get the formula forĭ is used to represent distance in this case. Now that we have the lengths of the two sides of the triangle, do you recall how we find its hypotenuse? We use the formula: c^2 = a^2 + b^2 Simply subtract the x-values and the y-values to find the lengths. The lengths of the two sides of the right-angled triangle are easy to find with the help of the x- and y- axis. To calculate the distance between them, join the points together and form a right-angled triangle that uses the two points as its corners. We have two points, one at x1, y1 and another one x2, y2. Let's look deeper into this with the points on the above graph. ![]()
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