Question

Which trig ratio would you use to find missing side length a? Responses tangent of open paren 82 degrees close paren sine of open paren 82 degrees close paren cosine of open paren 82 degrees close paren

Answer 1

To find the missing side length a, use the cosine function if a is the adjacent side, sine if it is the opposite side, and tangent if you have the lengths of the non-hypotenuse sides.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine which trigonometric ratio to use for finding the missing side length a, we need to assess the given angles and sides of the triangle in relation to a. If side a is the adjacent side of the angle in question and we have the length of the hypotenuse, then we use the cosine function. If side a is the opposite side, we would use the sine function, and if we have the lengths of the other side that is not the hypotenuse, we would use the tangent function. The decision is based on the relationship provided by the basic trigonometric definitions for right triangles, where cosine is the ratio of the adjacent side to the hypotenuse, sine is the opposite side to the hypotenuse, and tangent is the opposite side to the adjacent side.