How does Pythagoras Theorem work?

The Pythagoras Theorem only works with right-angled triangles. If you see a triangle other than right-angled triangles, then you do not need to apply the Pythagoras Theorem. The right-angled triangle has three sides, as with all triangles, and they are all labelled. One side is known as the hypotenuse (the longest side). The other two are known as the adjacent and the opposite. These two labels are determined by where the angle is but this is irrelevant when determining the length of a side using Pythagoras Theoream. The equation for the Pythagoras Theorem is a(squared)=b(squared)+c(squared). The a is the length of the hypotenuse. So you can find the length of the hypotenuse squared by squaring and adding the length of both the adjacent and opposite sides of the right-angled triangle. And to find the opposite or the adjacent length, you just rearrange and this is quite simple. 

Answered by Kamran H. Maths tutor

7180 Views

See similar Maths GCSE tutors

Related Maths GCSE answers

All answers ▸

How do you factorize a quadratic equation which has a coefficient of x^2 other than 1?


Express the equation x^2+6x-12 in the form (x+p)^2+q


How do you find the mean of a grouped frequency table?


A bag contains 10 apples. Three of the apples are green and seven of the apples are red. If an apple is pulled from the bag at random, what is the probability that the apple will be green?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences