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10 votes
10 votes
What is the formula for the distance between a line and a point on a graph?

User Joco
by
3.0k points

2 Answers

13 votes
13 votes
The minimum distance from the point to the line would be found by drawing a segment perpendicular to the line directly to the point. Our first step is to find the equation of the new line that connects the point to the line given in the problem. Because we know this new line is perpendicular to the line we're finding the distance
User VanBantam
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2.8k points
14 votes
14 votes
The length of the new line, between the given point and the newly-found intersection point, is the distance between the point and the original line. To find the distance, subtract the x and y values to get the x and y displacements. Therefore, there is no specific equation!
User Ryan Yiada
by
3.1k points
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