Two sides of a right triangle measure 5 in and 12 in. If the third side is longer than either of these sides, what is its measure?
Don't forget your units. Ex: 12 in
Using the Pythagorean theorem, we can determine the length of the hypotenuse (the third side) of this right triangle.
The Pythagorean theorem 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.
So, in this case, we have:
Hypotenuse^2 = 5^2 + 12^2
Hypotenuse^2 = 25 + 144
Hypotenuse^2 = 169
To find the length of the hypotenuse, we take the square root of both sides:
Hypotenuse = √169
Hypotenuse = 13 in
Therefore, the length of the third side of this right triangle is 13 inches.