Question

What is the slope of a line perpendicular to the line whose equation is x−3y=12. Fully reduce your answer.

Answer 1

3

Explanation:

Answer 2

m perpendicular = - 3

Explanation:

To start with, we need to find the slope of the given line, by solving for y in the equation

x - 3 y = 12

x = 3 y + 12

x - 12 = 3 y

divide by 3 both sides:

y = x/3 - 12/3

y = (1/3) x - 4

then, the slope of the given line is 1/3, and according to the property of perpendicular lines, a perpendicular slope will be the 'opposite of the reciprocal" of the slope of the original line. That is: the value - 3.

Then the slope of the perpendicular line is: m = - 3.