Asked by jonothan

The lengths of two sides of a right triangle are 12 inches and 15 inches. What is the difference between the two possible lengths of the third side of the triangle? Round your answer to the nearest tenth.

10.2 inches
24.0 inches
28.2 inches
30.0 inches

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
If the two given sides are the legs, the third side (hypotenuse) is sqrt(12^2+15^2)=sqrt(369)≈19.209.
If one given side is the hypotenuse, the other leg is sqrt(15^2−12^2)=sqrt(81)=9.
Difference ≈ 19.209−9 = 10.209 ≈ 10.2 inches.