The hypotenuse of a right triangle measures 15 cm and one of its legs measures 9 cm. Find the measure of the other leg. If necessary, round to the nearest tenth.

1 answer

To find the length of the other leg of a right triangle, we can use the Pythagorean theorem, which states:

\[ a^2 + b^2 = c^2 \]

where \(c\) is the length of the hypotenuse, and \(a\) and \(b\) are the lengths of the legs of the triangle.

Given:

  • The hypotenuse (\(c\)) is 15 cm.
  • One leg (\(a\)) is 9 cm.
  • We need to find the other leg (\(b\)).

We can rearrange the formula to solve for \(b\):

\[ b^2 = c^2 - a^2 \]

Substituting in the known values:

\[ b^2 = 15^2 - 9^2 \]

Calculating the squares:

\[ b^2 = 225 - 81 \]

Now, subtract:

\[ b^2 = 144 \]

Next, take the square root of both sides to find \(b\):

\[ b = \sqrt{144} = 12 \]

Thus, the measure of the other leg is \( \boxed{12} \) cm.