Chapter 3: Introduction to Triangles

3.1 Definition of a Triangle and its Classifications

Definition: A _______________ is a 3 sided polygon. A

_____________ is a closed figure which is the union of line
segments. (We will study more about polygons in chapter 5)
Because a triangle has 3 sides it also has 3 interior angles. These
three angles always add to ____________.
Labeling a triangle: Capital letters are used for the vertices. The
same letters in lower case are used to represent the sides opposite
those vertices.

A
b

c
B

Angles of the triangle are written using the single vertex letter
or with three letters.
Sides can also be written by their line segment name.

A triangle can be classified by its angles:

1. An _____________ TRIANGLE has 3
acute angles.

2. An ______________ TRIANGLE has one obtuse angle.

(Why only one?)

3. A _______________ TRIANGLE has one right angle.

(Again, why only one?)

We can also classify a triangle based on the number of congruent

sides it has.
Please note the following interesting fact about the
triangle:
A Triangle always has as many congruent angles as it
has congruent sides.
So knowing the angles can help you classify the triangle by
its sides too.
!

Classifying a triangle by its sides:

1. A _________________ TRIANGLE has no congruent sides &
therefore no congruent angles.
Draw examples. Mark the sides and angles accordingly.

2. An ___________________ TRIANGLE has two congruent sides

and two congruent angles.
Draw examples. Mark the sides and angles accordingly.

3. An ______________________ TRIANGLE has three congruent

sides and three congruent angles.
Draw an example. Mark the sides and angles accordingly.

What is the measure of each angle of the equilateral triangle?

Why?
This triangle can also be called an __________________ triangle,
since the 3 angles are congruent.

You try:
EX 1: Classify a triangle with angles of 40,"60 and 80.

EX2: Classify a triangle with angles of 120, 30and 30

EX 3: Classify a triangle with angles of 25,"90 and 65.

EX 4: Classify a triangle with angles of 100,"60 and 20.

EX 5: Classify a triangle with angles of 5113 and 7025.

EX 6: Classify a triangle with angles of 90"and 45.

EX 7: Classify a triangle with angles of 60"and 5960.

Some triangles have names for particular parts. Lets first discuss
the right triangle:
The easiest part of a right triangle to spot is its right angle. It is
symbolized with the small box in the right angle.
The side across from the right angle is known as the
____________________. It is always the longest side of the
right triangle.
The remaining two sides are the _______________. They are
always perpendicular to each other forming the right angle.
Label the parts of the right triangle below if AC CB.
A

Since C is the right angle, the other two angles of a right triangle
must be acute.
Why?

What angle pair name can you give these two angles?

Now lets look at the Isosceles Triangle. As was stated earlier, it

has 2 congruent sides. Those congruent sides are called the
______________; the non-congruent side is the
______________. The two angles that share the base are called
the _______________ ______________. These angles are
congruent. The angle formed by the legs is the _____________
ANGLE.
Label the parts of the Isosceles Triangle below, if AB

AC.

You try:
1. If the vertex angle is 106,
what is each base angle?

2. If a base angle is 68,

what is the vertex angle?

3.2 Interior Angles of a Triangle

The sum of the 3 interior angles of any triangle is _________
degrees
A triangle can have only 1 right angle
A triangle can have only 1 obtuse angle
If the triangle is a right triangle, then the remaining two
angles must add up to the remaining 90 degrees. In other
words, the acute angles of a right triangle are
___________________.
If the triangle is equilateral, then its also equiangular.
(Remember, as stated earlier, that a triangle always has as
many congruent angles as sides.) As a result, each angle of an
equilateral triangle measures ________ degrees.
If the triangle is an isosceles right triangle then each acute
base angle measures _________.

 The sum of the angles of a quadrilateral is ________ degrees.

The logic is simple: take any quadrilateral and draw a diagonal.
The quadrilateral is now a pair of triangles, each having 180
degrees.

180!
180!!

You try:
1. Two angles of a triangle are 78

2. Two angles of a triangle are 2413

and 45. What is the measure of

and 3624. What is the measure of

the third angle?

Then classify the triangle.

the third angle?

Then classify the triangle.

3. The angles of a triangle are represented by (3x + 1), (4x - 12) and (7x + 9).
Solve for x, find the measure of each angle and then classify the triangle.

3.3 Exterior Angles of a Triangle

When one side of a triangle is extended, the angle between that
extension and the adjacent side is known as an
______________ Angle. (Remember, ________________
means outside.)

In the diagram above, 1 is an exterior angle.

The measure of an exterior angle of a triangle equals the sum of
the two angles inside the triangle that are NOT adjacent to it the
two interior angles that dont share a side with the exterior angle.
In the diagram above, that makes m1 = m2 + m3.

What is the measure of exterior 1 if 2 = 46 and 3 = 77?

3

Look at

ABC below.
C

Please note: Each exterior angle

70

and its interior angle is

supplementary.
Example: CDB + CDA = 180

50

60

120

How many exterior angles does a triangle have?

What are the degree measures of the exterior angles at A and C in the above
diagram? Draw and label the angles.

Below, draw examples of an obtuse triangle and a right triangle with their
interior and exterior angles.

What can be concluded about the sum of the exterior angles of any triangle?

You try:
1. Solve for x and find the measure of the angles Q & M.

Q
(2x + 6)
153
P

(3x 8)
M

2. Find the measure of the vertex of an isosceles if either of the exterior angles
formed by extending the base measures 144.

3. Find the measure of a base of an isosceles if the exterior angle at the vertex
measures 132

4. In RST, angle S is a right angle and the mT = 38. Find the measure of the
exterior angle at R.

3.4 Line Segments Associated with the Triangle

There are three types of line segments that exist in the triangle.

1. A ___________________ is a line segment that is drawn from

a vertex to the midpoint of the opposite side.
A

In ABC, above, if M is the midpoint of BC, then AM is a median.

We can also draw medians to sides AB and AC, once we locate their
midpoints.

2. An _____________________ is a line segment drawn

perpendicularly from a vertex to the opposite side, forming right
angles
A
In the triangle at the
left, AD is an altitude
AD BC

How many altitudes does a triangle have?

3. An ____________________ __________________ in a
triangle does the same job it does when its not in a triangle: it cuts
an angle of the triangle into two congruent angles.
A

In the triangle at the

left, AD is the angle
bisector of angle A.

Therefore,

BAD CAD

How do you know which youre dealing with? The problem has to tell
you, either directly (using the words altitude or median or angle
bisector) or indirectly, by giving you the information that permits
you to draw the correct conclusion.

You try:

For #s 1- 6 Describe line segment DF in each of the following triangles.

D
1.

2.

3.

4.
42

42

C
E

_____________

______________

C
C

______________

_____________

D
5.

D
6.

C 2 cm
E

_________________

2 cm

________________

There are times when a single line segment can perform two or even
all three of these jobs.
In which triangle(s) can this occur?
Illustrate below:

3.5 Triangle Inequalities

Lets say your older brother has his drivers license and drives you
to school each day.
C

In the diagram above, lets let H symbolize your home. C can be

your brothers favorite source of coffee, and K, of course, is
Kellenberg.
No matter how many shortcuts he knows, how fast a driver he is,
how early he gets started, its a basic fact of geometry that a
detour for coffee on the way to school will add more mileage to the
car than going straight to school the shortest distance between
two points is a straight line.
As a result, we can make the following statement: the sum of two
sides of a triangle is _________________ than the third side. In
particular, the sum of the lengths of two shortest sides must be
greater than the longest side.

As far as angles in a triangle go, recall that the exterior angle of a

triangle is equal to the sum of the non-adjacent interior angles. As
a result, that exterior angle must be greater than either nonadjacent interior angle. (Think about it for a second if you have to
add two interior angles to get the exterior, then that exterior
MUST be greater than either of the two angles you added.)

3.6 Lengths of Line Segments within Triangles

Some curious things happen when we draw lines within triangles.
The first happens when we connect midpoints. Heres the rule:
The line segment joining the midpoints of two sides of a triangle is
_______________ to the third side and ___________ its length.
A
D

*mark diagram

In the diagram above, D is the midpoint of AB and E is the midpoint

of AC. As a result, DE is parallel to BC, and half its length.

The second rule is this: The median to the hypotenuse of a right

triangle is _____________ the length of the hypotenuse.
*mark diagram

A
D
B

In the diagram above, BD is the median to hypotenuse AC. BD is

half the length of AC.

You try:
1. Can these sets of numbers be the sides of a triangle?
a)

{3, 4, 5}

b) {11, 6, 9}

c) {2, 8, 10}

d)

{.5, 12, 12}

e) {7, 7, 7}

f) {13, 30, 13}

g)

{6, 4, 11}

h) {1, 1, 3}

i) {15, 8, 17}

For # 2 & 3 use this information:

In triangle RST, QP joins the midpoints of sides RS and TS, respectively.
2. Find the length of QP if RT is
a) 14

b)

d)

e) 31

6x

17

c)

26.5

f) 8

3. Find the length of RT if QP is

a) 9

b)

13

d) 6

e) 29

c)

10.36

f)

(x+3)

3.7 Angle - Side Relationship in a Triangle.

Here are more interesting facts about the triangle:
1. The longest side of a triangle is opposite the triangles
_______________ angle. Likewise, the largest angle will be
opposite the triangles _______________ side.
This is clearly demonstrated in the Right Triangle:
The hypotenuse of the right triangle
is the longest side of this triangle & it is
opposite the 90 angle, the largest angle.

2. The shortest side of a triangle is opposite the triangles

_______________ angle. Likewise, the smallest angle will be
opposite the triangles ________________ side.
You try:
1. In ABC, A = 50 & B = 60.
Name the longest and shortest
sides of ABC.

2. In ABC, AB = 11, BC = 10, and

AC = 15. Name the largest and
smallest angles of ABC.

3.8 The Isosceles and Equilateral Triangles

The Isosceles and Equilateral triangles have some very useful
properties.
Lets go back to that basic rule: a triangle always has as many
congruent angles as it has congruent sides. As a result, we have the
rule:
________________ _______________ of an isosceles triangle
are congruent. As youll recall from section 3.1, the base angles are
the angles touching the base. (The other angle is referred to as the
_______________ angle.)
The Converse (thats the reverse) of that rule is true as well: If
two angles of a triangle are congruent, the sides opposite them are
as well.
(Note: very often, the converse of a true statement is NOT true;
this is one of the rare occasions when both are true.)

Another special property of the isosceles triangle is that the

altitude is also the median is also the bisector of the vertex angle;
all three segments fall in the same place.
So, for example, in the diagram below, if we know that AD is an
altitude, we know the following:
- AD is perpendicular to BC. (ADB and ADC are right angles.)
- AD bisects BC (so BD DC)
- AD bisects A ( so BAD CAD)
A
*mark diagram

The equilateral triangle also has some unique properties. Again

going back to that basic rule, an equilateral triangle has 3 congruent
angles. In other words, every equilateral triangle is also equiangular.
(That means exactly what it sounds like: equal angles.)
And since we know that a triangle has 180 degrees, we know that
each angle of an equilateral triangle measures 60 degrees.
Also, because an equilateral triangle is, by definition, also isosceles,
all the properties we just discussed for the isosceles triangle also
apply to the equilateral.

3.9 The Pythagorean Theorem

Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician who lived in
the 6th century BC. Among his many contributions to both fields is
the theorem that bears his name: the Pythagorean Theorem.
In a right triangle, the sum of the squares of the lengths of the
legs is equal to the square of the length of the hypotenuse.
Or, to put it simply:
In a right triangle, _____ + _____ = _____, where a and b are
the legs and c is the hypotenuse.
That last bit is very important! The a and b values are
interchangeable, but c MUST be the hypotenuse. (Remember that
the hypotenuse of a right triangle is the side across from the right
angle.)
The Pythagorean Theorem can ONLY be used in a right triangleno
other triangles have a hypotenuse. And it can only be used to find
the SIDES of a right triangle, never the angles.
Much of the time, in using Pythagorean Theorem, your answer will
be an irrational numberthe square root of a number thats not a
perfect square. In such cases, please remember to leave your
answer in simplest radical form.

Pythagorean Triplesthree whole numbers that work in the

Pythagorean Theorem.
Pythagorean Triples are common right triangles. If you have two of
the three numbers in a triple, and theyre in the correct positions,
you can know the third number without doing the math.
For example, the worlds most common Pythagorean Triple is the
3-4-5 triple. Do the math, and youll see that 32+ 42= 52. So if youre
given a right triangle with legs of 3 and 4, you can simply state that
the hypotenuse is 5, because its a 3-4-5 triple. (Note, its not any 3
consecutive integers that will work; its these particular three.)
If you take a triple, and multiply each side by the same amount, you
get another triple. So, for example, if you take that same 3-4-5
triple, and multiply each side by 2, you get a 6-8-10 triple. Check
and youll see that it, too, works for the Pythagorean Theorem.
The most popular triples are, in order:
1. ______________
2. ______________
3. ______________
4. ______________
But theyre not, by any stretch of the imagination, the only triples
that exist. Heres a list of a few more:
http://www.tsm-resources.com/alists/trip.html

For a great take on the Pythagorean Theorem and what it DOESNT

say, take a look at what happened when the Scarecrow from the
Wizard of Oz was granted a brain:
http://www.teachertube.com/video/wizard-of-oz-and-thepythagorean-theorem-145155

You try:
1. Find the hypotenuse of a right triangle, if the legs are:
a) 9 & 12
b) 2 & 3
c) 5 & 6
d) 1.5 & 2

2. Find the other leg when the hypotenuse and one leg is given:
a) 26 & 10
b) 8 & 4
c) 17 & 3
d) 50 & 30

3. In an isosceles right triangle, what are the measures of the legs if the
hypotenuse is 10?

3.10 Special Right Triangles

The first is derived from the Equilateral Triangle.
It is the 30-60-90 degree triangle.
Here are some very special rules:
- The shorter leg is _________ the hypotenuse.
- The longer leg equals the shorter leg times ____________.
(Remember, of course, that the short leg is opposite the ________
degree angle, the long leg is opposite the __________, and the
hypotenuse is opposite the ___________ angle.)
Sometimes you will see
the rule shown this way:

30

x3

2x
60

x
Examples:

30

10

53

60

5
***We will also investigate what happens when the side opposite
the 60 degree angle is whole number.***

The second special triangle is the 45-45-90 degree triangle, or the

_________________ ______________ Triangle. In that
triangle, the following rules apply:
- The legs are _________________.
- The hypotenuse equals the leg times ______________.

x2

x
x

When the hypotenuse of the Isosceles Right Triangle is a

whole number then this rule applies:
- A leg equals the hypotenuse times 2/2.

x2
2
x2
2

***However, if you forget these rules for the Isosceles Right

Triangle, you can always use the Pythagorean Theorem to find
the lengths of the legs or hypotenuse.

You try:

(remember to draw pictures for each when solving)

30-60-90 triangle
1. Find the remaining two sides when the hypotenuse is 12.

2. Find the remaining two sides when the side opposite the 30 degree
angle is 7.

3. Find the remaining two sides when the side opposite the 60 degree
angle is 93.

4. Find the remaining two sides when the hypotenuse is 83.*

You try:

(remember to draw pictures for each when solving)

45-45-90 triangle
1. Find the remaining two sides when the hypotenuse is 82.

2. Find the remaining two sides when one leg is 6.

3. Find the remaining two sides when the hypotenuse is 14.

4. Find the remaining two sides when one leg is 102.

!