Question

The isosceles triangle has a perimeter of 7.5 m which equation can be used to find the value of x if the shortest side, y measures 2.1 m ?

Answer 1

7.5 = 2x + 2.1

Explanation:

The perimeter of a triangle is the sum of the sides. In an isosceles triangle, two sides are the same length. If x is the length of the two sides and y is the length of the third side, then:

P = 2x + y

Given that P = 7.5 and y = 2.1:

7.5 = 2x + 2.1

Answer 2

Answer: The equation that can be used to find the value of x is

2x + 2.1 = 7.5

Step-by-step explanation: An isosceles triangle is a type of triangle which has two of its sides equal to each other. It also has two it's angles (the base angles) equal to each other.

From the question, the given triangle has the shortest side, y to be 2.1 m. This means side y is shorter than the other two sides. Hence, the other two sides must be the sides that are equal to each other. These other two sides are denoted by x ( see the attachment for an illustrative diagram).

The perimeter of a triangle is the sum of all its sides. Therefore, the perimeter (P) of the given triangle is

P = x + x + y

P = 2x + y

From the question, P = 7.5 m

and y = 2.1 m

Hence,

7.5 m = 2x + 2.1 m

2x + 2.1 m = 7.5 m

This equation can be used to find the value of x. The equation can also be written as:

2x = 7.5 m - 2.1m OR

x = (7.5 m - 2.1m) / 2