Question

Difficulty: MediumCoordinate Geometry of Straight Lines

Calculate the area, in square units, of the triangle formed by the straight line 3x+4y24=03x + 4y - 24 = 0 and the coordinate axes.

Answer: 24 square units

Answer

The area of the triangle formed by the line and the coordinate axes is 24 square units.
To find the area of the triangle bounded by a straight line and the coordinate axes, determine the magnitude of the xx-intercept and yy-intercept. Setting y=0y = 0 in 3x+4y24=03x + 4y - 24 = 0 gives x=8x = 8. Setting x=0x = 0 gives y=6y = 6. The vertices of the right triangle are at (0,0)(0,0), (8,0)(8,0), and (0,6)(0,6). The area is calculated as 12×8×6=24\frac{1}{2} \times 8 \times 6 = 24 square units.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Find the xx-intercept of the straight line
x=8x = 8, corresponding to the point (8,0)(8, 0)
Setting y=0y = 0 determines where the line crosses the horizontal axis
2
Find the yy-intercept of the straight line
y=6y = 6, corresponding to the point (0,6)(0, 6)
Setting x=0x = 0 determines where the line crosses the vertical axis
3
Compute the area of the right-angled triangle formed with the origin (0,0)(0,0)
Area=12×8×6=24\text{Area} = \frac{1}{2} \times 8 \times 6 = 24
The coordinate axes are perpendicular, making the triangle right-angled with base length 8 and height 6

Key Concept

Area of a triangle bounded by a straight line and the coordinate axes
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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