If a triangle has sides 12, 16, and 20, which length is the length of the hypotenuse?(1 point)
The length of the hypotenuse in a right triangle is always the longest side. In this case, the longest side is 20. Therefore, the length of the hypotenuse is 20.
To determine the length of the hypotenuse in a triangle with side lengths of 12, 16, and 20, we need to identify the longest side.
In this case, the side length 20 is the longest among the three sides. Therefore, the length of the hypotenuse is 20.
To find the length of the hypotenuse, we can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states that in a right triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides.
Let's label the sides of the triangle as a, b, and c. In this case, a = 12, b = 16, and c is the hypotenuse that we want to find.
The Pythagorean theorem can be written as:
a^2 + b^2 = c^2
Substituting the given values:
12^2 + 16^2 = c^2
144 + 256 = c^2
400 = c^2
Now, we need to find the square root of both sides to solve for c:
√400 = √c^2
20 = c
Therefore, the length of the hypotenuse in the given triangle is 20 units.