Points, Lines and Angles

Definitions
DIMENSION of an object is the number of independent directions that you can move in the object.
ZERO-DIMENSIONAL (0D)
(has no length, no width and no thickness)
POINT is a small dot:
ONE-DIMENSIONAL (1D)
(has length, but no width and no thickness)
LINE extends infinitely.
LINE SEGMENT AB only extends between two ENDPOINTS, A and B
A B
RAY is a part of a line that has one endpoint and extends infinitely away from the point.
PERPENDICULAR LINES are lines that intersect at a 90o
angle.
PARALLEL LINES are lines that never intersect.
TRANSVERSAL LINE is a line that intersects two or more other lines.
TWO-DIMENSIONAL (2D) (has length and width, but no thickness)
PLANE is a flat surface that extends infinitely in all directions. It has length and width, but no thickness.
=
PLANE GEOMETRY is the study of two-dimensional objects.
THREE-DIMENSIONAL (3D) (has length, width, and thickness)
SOLID GEOMETRY is the study of three-dimensional objects. A cube is an example of a 3D object. B C
A
ANGLES
ANGLE is formed by two rays which have a common endpoint, the VERTEX. One of the rays is called
the INITIAL SIDE and the other is called the TERMINAL SIDE. You can think of the initial side as
stationary, and the terminal side as carving out the angle.
Terminal Side
Initial Side
This angle is called either B, ABC or CBA or # if there is a number # inside the angle .
DEGREES measure how big an angle is.
ACUTE ANGLE is <90o
:
RIGHT ANGLE is 90o
, and is indicated by a small square at the vertex:
OBTUSE ANGLE is between 90o
and 180o
:
STRAIGHT ANGLE is 180o
:
270o
ANGLE:
360o
is the total degrees in a circle, when the terminal side carves out an angle all the way until it
gets back to the initial side.
MORE ANGLES
Read the following definitions and identify the angles in the diagram:
1 2
3 4
5 6
7 8
COMPLIMENTARY ANGLES are a pair of two angles that add up to 90o
. They are also said to be
COMPLEMENTS of each other.
SUPPLEMENTARY ANGLES are a pair of two angles that add up to 180o
. They are also said to be
SUPPLEMENTS of each other.
VERTICAL ANGLES are a pair of two angles that have the same measure and are formed by the
opposite angles of any two intersecting lines.
INTERIOR ANGLE is formed by a transversal and parallel lines, and is located on the interior of the
parallel lines.
EXTERIOR ANGLE is formed by a transversal and parallel lines, and is located on the exterior of the
parallel lines.
ALTERNATE INTERIOR ANGLES are a pair of two interior angles that have the same measure. They
are located on alternate sides of a transversal line.
ALTERNATE EXTERIOR ANGLES are a pair of two exterior angles that have the same measure.
They are located on alternate sides of a transversal line.
CORRESPONDING ANGLES are a pair of two angles that have the same measure, one interior and one
exterior. They are located on the same side of a transversal line.
Triangles
Theorem. The angles of any triangle add up to 180o
.
Proof.
Let ABC be any triangle B
A C
Draw the line that is parallel to the base of the triangle and that intersects point B.
Label the angles, for convenience.
B
1 2 3
A 4 5 C
AB and BC are transversal lines intersecting the parallel lines. So, we can use stuff from last section.
We know that angles 1, 2 and 3 form a straight angle, which is 180o
.
Therefore, 1+ 2+ 3=180o
.
But using alternate interior angles, 1= 4 and 3= 5.
Therefore, 1+ 2+ 3= 4+ 2+ 5=180o
.
Similar Triangles
SIMILAR FIGURES have the same shape but have different sizes.
SIMILAR TRIANGLES are the same angles but have different sides. Similar triangles have 3 sets of
CORRESPONDING ANGLES which have the same measure, and 3 sets of CORRESPONDING
SIDES which are opposite the corresponding sides.
Right Triangles has one 90o
angle
HYPOTENUSE is the longest side of a right triangle, opposite the 90o
angle.
LEGS of a right triangle are the shorter two sides of a right triangle.
Theorem. (Pythagorean) If we have a right triangle and label the sides as follows:
LEG a HYPOTENUSE c
LEG b
Then a
2
+ b2
= c
2
.
10.6 Right Triangle Trigonometry
Definitions
A = ADJACENT SIDE to an angle is the leg of the triangle that forms the angle, but is not the
hypotenuse.
O = OPPOSITE SIDE to an angle is the leg of the triangle opposite the angle.
H = HYPOTENUSE
Trigonometric Functions
Two similar right triangles (which have the same angles but different length sides) have the following
special property: Even though the sides of the two triangles are different, the ratios of corresponding
sides are the same. The trigonometric functions listed below are exactly these ratios of sides.
Abbreviation
Hypotenuse
Opposite Side SINE = SIN = SOH
Hypotenuse
Adjacent Side COSINE = COS = CAH
Adjacent Side
Opposite Side TANGENT = TAN = TOA