Question

Which expression finds the length of side x in this right triangle?

Answer 1

x=the square root of 5 squared + 8.5 squared which is the top right one

Answer 2

The expression which is used to find the length of the side x in the right triangle is:

`x=√(5^2+8.5^2)`

Explanation:

We know that in a right angled triangle the Pythagorean Theorem holds true.

Pythagorean Theorem--

It states that if c is the hypotenuse of the right angled triangle and a and b are two legs of the triangle then the following relation holds true:

`c^2=a^2+b^2`

Here we have:

`c=x\\\\a=5\\\\and\ b=8.5`

Hence, we get by the Pythagorean Theorem that:

`x^2=5^2+8.5^2\\\\i.e.\\\\x=\pm √(5^2+8.5^2)`

But since length can't be negative hence we have:

`x=√(5^2+8.5^2)`