Right triangle word problems

1. In a mall, a person rides down an escalator, turns directly left at the base, and
walks 16 feet (ft) to a kiosk. The escalator has a vertical rise of 18ft and a

horizontal run of 24ft. If the person could have traveled in a straight line from the
top of the escalator to the kiosk, what would the distance be, in feet?

A. 24ft B. 30ft C. 34ft D. 46ft

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 3

2.

contractor must build a wheelchair ramp with a recommended 8 angle of elevation

above the horizontal, as shown above. If the elevation from the sidewalk to the bottom
of the door is 3.8feet (ft), how many feet from the door must the ramp begin? (Round
your answer to the nearest hundredth of a foot.)

Correct Answer: 27.04 Difficulty Level: 3

3.
Caleb is
designing a
conveyor
belt that has
to move
manufactured products up an incline, as shown above. To avoid products sliding
or toppling, he has determined an ideal angle above the horizontal of 0.19 radians.
What distance, d, in meters, will the product be conveyed using Caleb's design?
(Round your answer to the nearest tenth of a meter.)
Correct Answer: 16.3 Difficulty Level: 3

4.

The

approximate height and base diameter of a conical metal valve plug are shown in the
diagram above in centimeters (cm). What is the distance, d, in centimeters, from the
vertex to the outer edge of the circular base? (Round your answer to the nearest tenth
of a centimeter.)

Correct Answer: 4.8 Difficulty Level: 3

5. On a cloudy night, Madhu, an aviation meteorologist, places a bright light on the

ground to shine up at the clouds above, and then he moves to a point exactly 50
feet (ft) away from the light. He then measures the angle of inclination to the spot
of light on the base of the clouds above, as shown in the figure. If Madhu
measures the angle of inclination to be 36.5at a height of 4 ft above the ground,
what is the height of the cloud base above the ground, h, to the nearest foot?
 Feet

Correct Answer: 41 Difficulty Level: 3

6. A player at point A passes a ball to a player at point B. What is the distance, in

yards, between point A and point B? (Round your answer to the nearest tenth of a
yard.)

Correct Answer: 45.5 Difficulty Level: 2

1
7. Wanahton's rectangular baking sheet is 9 inches (in) by 13 in. To the nearest
2
inch, what is the longest breadstick Wanahton could bake on his baking sheet?
A. 13in B. 14in C. 124in D. 259in

Correct Answer: B Difficulty Level: 2

8. Due to weather, a barge captain decides to reach her destination in two legs: one
due north and one due west. On a direct route, her destination is
about 1,830 (mi) away; see the figure above. If after traveling 605 mi due north
the captain determines it is time to head due west, how many more miles are left
in the trip? (Round your answer to the nearest mile.)

Correct Answer: 1727 Difficulty Level: 2

9. Abby is buying a widescreen TV that she will hang on the wall between two
windows. The windows are 36 inches apart, and wide screen TVs are
approximately twice as wide as they are tall. Of the following, which is the
longest that the diagonal of a widescreen TV can measure and still fit between the
windows?

A. 32 inches B. 42 inches C. 55 inches D. 60 inches

Correct Answer: A Difficulty Level: 2

10. Bilal was assembling a set of bunkbeds and wanted to make sure the support posts
were perpendicular to the floor. He measured that the posts
were 165 centimeters tall and 220cm apart. How long should the diagonal
measurement be if the support posts are perpendicular to the floor?

A. 72cm B. 130cm C. 275cm D. 385cm

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 2

11.

Note:
Figure not drawn to scale.
The floor inside a bathtub slopes down at a 1.2 angle toward the drain. The
horizontal distance from the far end of the bathtub floor to the drain is 5 feet. What is
the total distance the water travels from the far end of the bathtub floor to the drain?

Note: sin(1.2)0.02094 and cos(1.2)0.99978.

A. 1.26 inches
B. 60.01 inches
C. 165.58 inches
D. 238.75 inches
Correct Answer: B Difficulty Level: 2

12. Using coordinate locations, Colonel Broudin determines his destination to be

exactly 432 miles (mi) east and 84 mi north of his ship. In order to make a direct
line to his destination, Colonel Broudin must calculate , as shown above. What
is the value of , to the nearest tenth of a degree?

Correct Answer: 11 Difficulty Level: 2

13. Saul's plane is 6 miles (mi) from the airport runway when he begins his descent
from 14,000feet (ft): see the figure above. There are 5,280 feet in 11 mile. How
far, in miles, does the plane actually travel in air during its descent? (Round your
answer to the nearest mile)
 Correct Answer: 7 Difficulty Level: 2

14. Li Wei usually gets to work by walking 1.3 miles north on 12th Street and then
turning right 90and walking east on Azalia Street for 3.3 miles. His friend
mentions that Li Wei could take Washington Street instead, which goes directly
from his apartment to his workplace, in a straight line. Approximately how much
shorter, in miles, is this route compared to Li Wei's usual walking route? (Round
your answer to the nearest tenth of a mile.)

Correct Answer: 1.1 Difficulty Level: 2

15. Finn is drafting plans for a staircase that will go from the sidewalk to the doorway
of a historic building 84 feet (ft) above. He measures the length of a string
stretched from the sidewalk to the door and finds it to be 123 ft, as shown at left.
What angle , above the horizontal, should be used to build this staircase?
(Round your answer to the nearest hundredth of a radian.)
 Correct Answer: 0.75 Difficulty Level: 2

16. A forest ranger wants to determine the height of a redwood tree.

Standing 145 meters (m) away from the tree, the ranger measures angles of
inclination and declination to the tree's top and base, respectively, as shown to the
left. Which of the following is closest to the height, h, of the tree?

A. 58 meters
B. 59 meters
C. 60 meters
D. 62 meters
Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 2

17. A player at point A passes a ball to a player at point B. What is the distance, in
yards, between point A and point B? (Round your answer to the nearest tenth of a
yard.)
 Correct Answer: 45.5 Difficulty Level: 2

18. A tent forms an equilateral triangular prism, with both triangular faces exposed.
The triangular face is 196 centimeters (cm) wide, and the tent is 250cm long. To
the nearest centimeter, what is the height of the tent?

A. 98cm B. 170cm C. 217cm D. 339cm

Correct Answer: B Difficulty Level: 3

19. A farmer plans to install solar collection panels to provide winter heating for the
livestock. The most efficient panel angle for winter heating in the farm's region
is 60 relative to ground level. If an individual panel is 67 inches (in) long and
installed on the ground according to these instructions, what is the height of the
upper edge above the ground?
134 3
A. 33.5 3 in B. 33.5 2 in C. 33.5in D. in
3

Correct Answer: A Difficulty Level: 3

20. Tanya is building a swingset for her yard, with the measurements shown above.
Tanya adds a brace parallel to the ground. If the lower edge of the brace
is 1.4 meters (m) above the ground, about what is the width, w, in inches, of the
brace?
A. 1.6m B. 1.7m C. 2.1m D. 2.4m

Correct Answer: D Difficulty Level: 3

3
21. A plumber slopes a drain pipe 4 inch diagonally downward per foot of
horizontal distance. The pipe extends 45 feet horizontally. To the nearest inch,
what is the length of the pipe?

A. 34in B. 56in C. 541in D. 6,493in

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 3

22. A stained glass box has a hinged lid with a chain to keep the lid from opening too
far and knocking the box over. The diagram above represents the side view of the
box. About what is the length of chain needed to allow the lid to open 120 ?
 1 7 1 2
A. 2 2 in B. 2 8 in C.4 3 in D. 8 3 in
Correct Answer: D Difficulty Level: 3

23. A spiral staircase makes 4 full turns as it climbs 20 feet (ft), as represented in the
figure above. The outer railing is a constant distance of 2ft from the midline of the
staircase. About what is the length of the railing?

A. 32ft
B. 50ft
C. 54ft
D. 80ft

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 4

24. According to some reconstructions, the Sneferu pyramid, also called the bent
pyramid, had the measurements shown above. Segments that appear parallel are
parallel. Based on those measurements, what was the height of the pyramid to the
nearest cubit?
Note: cos(44)0.72, tan(44)0.97, cos(54)0.59 and tan(54
)1.38.

Correct Answer: 202 Difficulty Level: 4

25. The figure above shows the top view of a wedding cake where each layer is a
square-based prism. The corners of each square are placed at the midpoint
between the corners of the next largest square. What is the length, x, to the nearest
inch (in) of each side of the smallest square?
A. 3in B. 6in C. 9in D. 13in

Correct Answer: B Difficulty Level: 4

26. Lamp shade dimensions are typically in the form

diameterbottom diameterslant height. For a lampshade with the
measurements in the figure above, to the nearest tenth of an inch, what is the
vertical height of the lampshade?
 Correct Answer: 13 Difficulty Level: 4

27. The breakover angle is the supplement to the maximum angle of the ground under
a vehicle that will not touch its undercarriage. In the figure above, the angled
ground is centered between the wheels, with a breakover angle of 23. To the
nearest inch, what is the height, h, of the undercarriage above where the wheels
touch the ground?

Note: cos(11.5)0.98 and tan(11.5)0.20 .

Correct Answer: 10 Difficulty Level: 4

28. An architect is adding a south-facing room to a house. The residents do not want
the sun to shine through the window at the peak of summer, when the sun shines
at a 73.5 angle relative to the ground on that side of the house. The window
is 1.8 meters long and reaches the ceiling of the room, as shown in the figure to
the left. The architect plans a roof overhang parallel to the ground. How wide does
the overhang need to be to block the sun at that angle?
Note: sin(73.5)0.96, cos(73.5)0.28, tan(73.5)3.38 .
 A. 0.51m
B. 0.53m
C. 1.27m
D. 1.73m

Correct Answer: B
Difficulty Level: 3

29. Note: Figure not drawn to scale.

When a bicycle turns, its front and rear wheels follow circular paths that have the
same center. The turning radius, r, for a bicycle depends on the width of the
wheelbase and the angle the front wheel can safely turn, as shown in the figure above.
What is the turning radius for a bicycle with a 45 inch (in) wheelbase with the front
wheel turned 10?

Note: sin(10)0.174, cos(10)0.985, and tan(10)0.176.

 A. 10in B. 14in C. 255in D. 259in

Correct Answer: D Difficulty Level: 3

30. The diagram above gives the measurements for a side view of a buffet counter
with a sneeze guard. What is the approximate distance, d (shown by the dotted
line), needed to reach from the sneeze guard to the lower rear corner of the food
well?

A. 24in B. 28in C. 30in D. 31in

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 3

31. A plane flies approximately 30 north of east for 12 kilometers (km)and then
continues for the next 31 km at approximately 60 north of east, as shown at left.
What distance, d, in kilometers does the plane end up from its original location?
(Round your answer to the nearest kilometer.)

Correct Answer: 42 Difficulty Level: 3

32. The dotted line in the ramp shown above is the shortest, but steepest, distance, in
feet (ft), up the ramp. The dashed line is the longest distance in a straight line up
the ramp, but has the least steep slope. To the nearest tenth of a foot, how much
longer is the distance with the least slope than the distance with the greatest slope?
 13
Correct Answer: Difficulty Level: 3
10

33. A ladder is leaning against a wall. The top of the ladder is 9 feet (ft) above the
ground. If the bottom of the ladder is moved 3ft farther from the wall, the ladder
will be lying flat on the ground. How long is the ladder, in feet?

Correct Answer: 15 Difficulty Level: 3

34. In a mall, a person rides down an escalator, turns directly left at the base, and
walks 16 feet (ft)to a kiosk. The escalator has a vertical rise of 18ft and a
horizontal run of 24ft. If the person could have traveled in a straight line from the
top of the escalator to the kiosk, what would the distance be, in feet?

A. 24ft B. 30ft C.34ft D. 46ft

Correct Answer: C Difficulty Level: 3

35. Kapil wraps a ribbon diagonally around a cylindrically shaped package, so that it
make 3 full turns, then tapes it at each end. The package has a height
of 18 centimeters (cm), and the ribbon is at a constant 30 angle relative to the
lower edge of the cylinder. About how long does Kapil's ribbon need to be?

A. 10cm B. 12cm C. 31cm D. 36cm

Correct Answer: D Difficulty Level: 4

36. The obelisk in the diagram above is composed of a right square-based pyramid
and a truncated right square-based pyramid. The diagram gives the lengths of the
edges in centimeters (cm). What is the height of the obelisk?
A. 1,019cm
B. 1,089cm
C. 1,105cm
D. 1,120cm

Correct Answer: B Difficulty Level: 4

37. A quilter fashions the design shown above of

1
inscribed squares. The corners of each square are of the distance between the
3

corners of the next largest square. What is the length , x, to the nearest centimeter
(cm), of each side of the smallest square?

Correct Answer: 12 Difficulty Level: 4

38. The far edge of the head of the flashlight is 5.3 inches (in) from the wall, as shown
in the figure above. What is the approximate diameter d, in inches, of the circle of
light cast on the wall?

Note: cos(165)0.97 and sin(165)0.26

A. 1.42in B. 2.42in C. 2.84in D. 3.84in

Correct Answer: D Difficulty Level: 4

39. The figure above shows the measurements for the pavement in a park meeting
space. The shortest section has a base of 3 meters (m). Each of the 18 sections of
pavement is a right triangle with a base equal to the length of the previous
hypotenuse and a height of 2m. What is the length, , of the hypotenuse of the
longest section?
A. 9m B.39m C. 18 13 m D.81m
Correct Answer: A Difficulty Level: 4

40. The screen resolution of a certain cell phone display is 1080 by 720 pixels. The
screen measures 10.2 centimeters diagonally. What is the approximate length,
in centimeters, of the shortest side of the display?

A. 5.66cm B. 6.8cm C. 8.49cm D. 15.3cm

Correct Answer: A Difficulty Level: 4

41. Dennis Oppenheim designed an 18foot (ft) high fiberglass safety cone statue for
Seattle's Olympic Sculpture park. If the sculpture is similar to a typical safety
cone with the dimensions shown above, what is the slant height of the safety cone
statue, to the nearest tenth of a foot?
 183
Correct Answer: Difficulty Level: 4
10

42. A hanging planter has the dimensions shown to the left in inches (in). Each
support cable is of equal length. The pot for the planter is a right rectangular
prism. About what is the total height (from where the cables meet to the base of
the planter) of the hanging planter?
 A. 21.28in
B. 22.25in
C. 29.28in
D. 30.25in

Correct Answer: C
Difficulty Level: 4

43. Suppose that the interior of a

hinged car door forms a 38angle with the body of the car when it is open. Given
the measurements in the figure above, what is the width w, in inches, of the
opening of the door? Round to the nearest inch.

Note: sin(19)0.326 and tan(19)0.344

Correct Answer: 31 Difficulty Level: 4