MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

Stewarts Theorem
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Remark
Want to test out your knowledge? Try the Stewarts Theorem Problem Set.

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See full problem set here

Warning

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This Stewarts Theorem topic is intended for students with a Geometry rating be-

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tween 1300 (Silver) and 1500 (Gold).

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1 The Diagram

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Definition 1.1 (Triangle parts)
In △𝐴𝐵𝐶 with point 𝐷 on side 𝐵𝐶 , we let

𝐴𝐵 = 𝑐, 𝐴𝐶 = 𝑏, 𝐵𝐶 = 𝑎, 𝐵𝐷 = 𝑚, 𝐷𝐶 = 𝑛, 𝐴𝐷 = 𝑑.

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𝐴

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𝑑
𝑐 𝑏

𝑚 𝑛
𝐵 𝐷 𝑎 𝐶
| {z }
𝑎

2 Stewart’s Theorem—The Big Statement

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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

Theme 2.1 (Stewart’s Theorem)

For any point 𝐷 on 𝐵𝐶 in △𝐴𝐵𝐶 ,

𝑏2 𝑚 + 𝑐2 𝑛 = 𝑎 𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛 .

Sometimes, we like to write it as:

𝑚𝑎𝑛 + 𝑑𝑎𝑑 = 𝑏𝑚𝑏 + 𝑐𝑛𝑐

and remember it as: “man and his dad put a bomb in the sink.”

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a l
𝑑
𝑐 𝑏

hD O n 𝑚 𝑛

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𝐵 𝐷 𝐶

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| {z }

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𝑎

M U s 𝑚𝑎𝑛 + 𝑑𝑎𝑑 = 𝑏𝑚𝑏 + 𝑐𝑛𝑐

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3 Why is it Useful?
Sometimes we know five of the six numbers 𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐, 𝑑, 𝑚, 𝑛 and need the last one. Stewart’s

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Theorem is the perfect shortcut—no angles required!

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4 A Proof Using the Pythagorean Theorem
Let the altitude from 𝐴 to 𝐵𝐶 meet 𝐵𝐶 at 𝐻 . Let 𝐴𝐻 = ℎ, 𝐶𝐻 = 𝑥 , and 𝐻 𝐷 = 𝑦 .
𝐴

𝑑
𝑐 ℎ 𝑏

𝐵 𝑚 𝐻 𝐷 𝐶
𝑎 𝑥 𝑛

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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

Note that 𝑥 − 𝑦 = 𝑛 (since 𝐷 is between 𝐻 and 𝐶 ), and 𝑚 − 𝑦 = 𝐵𝐻 since 𝐻 is between 𝐵

and 𝐷.

4.1 Step 1: Apply Pythagorean Theorem to Right Triangles

We have four right triangles to consider: △𝐴𝐻𝐶 , △𝐴𝐻 𝐷, and △𝐴𝐻 𝐵.
𝐴 𝐴 𝐴

ℎ 𝑏 ℎ 𝑑 𝑐 ℎ

𝐻 𝑥 𝐶 𝐻 𝑦 𝐷 𝐵 𝑚− 𝑦 𝐻

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△𝐴𝐻𝐶 △𝐴𝐻 𝐷 △𝐴𝐻 𝐵

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From △𝐴𝐻𝐶 : ℎ2 + 𝑥 2 = 𝑏2

From △𝐴𝐻 𝐷: ℎ2 + 𝑦 2 = 𝑑 2

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From △𝐴𝐻 𝐵: ℎ2 + (𝑚 − 𝑦) 2 = 𝑐2

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4.2 Step 2: Eliminate ℎ and use geometric relationships

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From the geometric setup, we have 𝑥 − 𝑦 = 𝑛 (since 𝐷 is between 𝐻 and 𝐶 ).

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From the first two equations:

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ℎ2 = 𝑏2 − 𝑥 2 = 𝑑 2 − 𝑦 2

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Therefore: 𝑏2 − 𝑥 2 = 𝑑 2 − 𝑦 2 , which gives us

𝑏2 − 𝑑 2 = 𝑥 2 − 𝑦 2 = (𝑥 − 𝑦)(𝑥 + 𝑦) = 𝑛(𝑥 + 𝑦).

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From the second and third equations:

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ℎ2 = 𝑑 2 − 𝑦 2 = 𝑐2 − (𝑚 − 𝑦) 2

Therefore: 𝑑 2 − 𝑦 2 = 𝑐2 − (𝑚 − 𝑦) 2 , which gives us

𝑑 2 − 𝑐2 = 𝑦 2 − (𝑚 − 𝑦) 2 = 𝑦 2 − (𝑚2 − 2𝑚 𝑦 + 𝑦 2 ) = 2𝑚 𝑦 − 𝑚2 = 𝑚( 2 𝑦 − 𝑚).

4.3 Step 3: Solve for 𝑥 + 𝑦 and 2 𝑦 − 𝑚

From our equations:

𝑏2 − 𝑑 2
𝑏2 − 𝑑 2 = 𝑛(𝑥 + 𝑦) ⇒ 𝑥+ 𝑦=
𝑛

2 2 𝑑 2 − 𝑐2
𝑑 − 𝑐 = 𝑚( 2 𝑦 − 𝑚) ⇒ 2𝑦 − 𝑚 =
𝑚
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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

Since 𝑥 = 𝑦 + 𝑛, we have 𝑥 + 𝑦 = 2 𝑦 + 𝑛. Therefore:

𝑏2 − 𝑑 2
2𝑦 + 𝑛 =
𝑛
𝑏2 − 𝑑 2 𝑏 2 − 𝑑 2 − 𝑛2
2𝑦 = −𝑛=
𝑛 𝑛
2
−𝑐2
From the second equation: 2 𝑦 = 𝑚 + 𝑑 𝑚 .

Setting these equal:

𝑏 2 − 𝑑 2 − 𝑛2 𝑑 2 − 𝑐2
=𝑚+
𝑛 𝑚
Multiply through by 𝑚𝑛:

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𝑚(𝑏2 − 𝑑 2 − 𝑛2 ) = 𝑚𝑛 · 𝑚 + 𝑛(𝑑 2 − 𝑐2 )

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𝑚(𝑏2 − 𝑑 2 − 𝑛2 ) = 𝑚2 𝑛 + 𝑛(𝑑 2 − 𝑐2 )

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𝑚𝑏2 − 𝑚𝑑 2 − 𝑚𝑛2 = 𝑚2 𝑛 + 𝑛𝑑 2 − 𝑛𝑐2

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𝑚𝑏2 + 𝑛𝑐2 = 𝑚𝑑 2 + 𝑛𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛2 + 𝑚2 𝑛

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𝑚𝑏2 + 𝑛𝑐2 = 𝑑 2 (𝑚 + 𝑛) + 𝑚𝑛(𝑚 + 𝑛)

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Since 𝑚 + 𝑛 = 𝑎:

e 𝑚𝑏2 + 𝑛𝑐2 = 𝑎𝑑 2 + 𝑎𝑚𝑛 = 𝑎(𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛)

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This gives us Stewart’s Theorem:

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𝑏2 𝑚 + 𝑐2 𝑛 = 𝑎(𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛)

Or in the memorable form: 𝑚𝑎𝑛 + 𝑑𝑎𝑑 = 𝑏𝑚𝑏 + 𝑐𝑛𝑐

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5 Worked Examples

Example 5.1 (Finding a side length)

In △𝐴𝐵𝐶 , 𝑎 = 10, 𝑏 = 8, 𝑐 = 7, and 𝐵𝐷 = 6, 𝐷𝐶 = 4. Find 𝐴𝐷.

𝐴 𝐴

√
7 ? 8 7 34 8

𝐵 6 10 𝐷 4 𝐶 𝐵 6 10 𝐷 4 𝐶

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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

Solution
Here 𝑚 = 6, 𝑛 = 4, 𝑎 = 10, 𝑏 = 8, 𝑐 = 7, and 𝑑 = 𝐴𝐷 is unknown.

Apply Stewart:
𝑏2 𝑚 + 𝑐2 𝑛 = 𝑎 𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛 .

Plug in numbers:
82 · 6 + 72 · 4 = 10 𝑑 2 + 6 · 4 .

Compute:
384 + 196 = 10 𝑑 2 + 24=⇒ 580 = 10𝑑 2 + 240.


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10𝑑 2 = 340 =⇒ 𝑑 2 = 34 =⇒ 𝑑 = 34.

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Example 5.2 (The median shortcut)

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If 𝐴𝐷 is a median, then 𝑚 = 𝑛 = 2𝑎 . Show that

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2𝑏2 + 2𝑐2 = 𝑎2 + 4𝑑 2 .

hD O n 𝐴

a t s e 𝑐 𝑑 𝑏

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𝑎 𝐷 𝑎
2 2

Solution
Replace 𝑚 and 𝑛 by 𝑎/2 in Stewart:

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𝑎2
𝑏2 2𝑎 𝑐2 2𝑎 = 𝑎 𝑑2 +



+ .

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4

Multiply everything by 2:
𝑎3
𝑎𝑏2 + 𝑎𝑐2 = 2𝑎𝑑 2 + 2
.
Finally divide by 𝑎:

𝑎2
𝑏2 + 𝑐2 = 2𝑑 2 + 2
=⇒ 2𝑏2 + 2𝑐2 = 𝑎2 + 4𝑑 2 .

Example 5.3 (Angle bisector meets Stewart’s theorem)

In △𝐴𝐵𝐶 , we have 𝐴𝐵 = 6, 𝐴𝐶 = 8, and 𝐵𝐶 = 10. If 𝐴𝐷 is the angle bisector of ∠𝐴,
find the length of 𝐴𝐷.

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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

𝐴𝐷
6 8

𝐵 𝐷 𝐶
10

Solution

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Since 𝐴𝐷 is the angle bisector of ∠𝐴, we can use the angle bisector theorem to find 𝐵𝐷

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and 𝐷𝐶 .

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Step 1: Apply the angle bisector theorem

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𝐵𝐷 𝐴𝐵 6 3
= = =
𝐷𝐶 𝐴𝐶 8 4

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Let 𝐵𝐷 = 3𝑡 and 𝐷𝐶 = 4𝑡 for some positive value 𝑡 . Since 𝐵𝐷 + 𝐷𝐶 = 𝐵𝐶 = 10:

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10

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3𝑡 + 4𝑡 = 10 ⇒ 7𝑡 = 10 ⇒ 𝑡=
7

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Therefore:

l U 𝐵𝐷 = 𝑚 = 3 ·
10
=
30
, 𝐷𝐶 = 𝑛 = 4 ·
10
=
40

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7 7 7 7

Step 2: Apply Stewart’s theorem Now we use Stewart’s theorem with 𝑎 = 10, 𝑏 = 8,
𝑐 = 6, 𝑚 = 30
7
, 𝑛 = 40
7
:
𝑏2 𝑚 + 𝑐2 𝑛 = 𝑎(𝑑 2 + 𝑚𝑛)

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2 30 2 40 30 40
 

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2
8 · +6 · = 10 𝑑 + ·
7 7 7 7

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Solving this for 𝑑 gives √︂ √ √
1152 1152 24 2
𝑑= = =
49 7 7

Remark
Try tackling the problem set for Stewarts Theorem interactively on the MathDash platform.
Get instant feedback, progressive hints, and track your progress.

• Problem 1: Difficulty 1300 (Silver), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 2: Difficulty 1350 (Silver), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 3: Difficulty 1400 (Gold), Time Limit: 20 min

• Problem 4: Difficulty 1400 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

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MathDash (Last updated 2025-07-12) Stewart’s Theorem

• Problem 5: Difficulty 1400 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 6: Difficulty 1420 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 7: Difficulty 1450 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 8: Difficulty 1450 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 9: Difficulty 1450 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 10: Difficulty 1450 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 11: Difficulty 1450 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 12: Difficulty 1500 (Gold), Time Limit: 15 min

• Problem 13: Difficulty 1600 (Platinum), Time Limit: 20 min

• Problem 14: Difficulty 1600 (Platinum), Time Limit: 20 min

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See full problem set here

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