Answer:
27
Step-by-step explanation:
The triangle shown is a right triangle, indicated by the little square at the bottom right. When trying to find the length of a missing leg of a right triangle we can use the Pythagorean theorem.
Pythagorean theorem : a² + b² = c²
Where a and b = legs and c = hypotenuse ( longest side )
We are given the length of the hypotenuse as well as a leg and we need to find the other leg.
Hypotenuse (c) = 45
Leg (a) = 36
To find the length of the other leg we can plug in the given values of the hypotenuse and the leg into the Pythagorean theorem and solve for b
Recall the Pythagorean theorem : a² + b² = c²
a = 36 and c = 45
(36)² + b² = (45)²
simplify exponents : 36² = 1296 and 45² = 2025
1296 + b² = 2025
subtract 1296 from both sides: 1296 - 1296 cancels out and 2025 - 1296 = 729
b² = 729
take the square root of both sides: √(b)² = b and √729 = 27
We're left with b = 27 meaning that the length of the other leg ( or missing side ) is 27
