Name: _________________________ Section: _______
Packet 7: Triangle Trigonometry
Topic 1: The Area of a Triangle & Basic Trigonometry
Labeling a Triangle
Types of Triangles and Their Properties
The angles in a triangle add up to 180 degrees.
Equilateral Triangle Isosceles Triangle
Area of Triangle
Given the base and height, you can use the Given 2 sides and an angle you can use the
formula formula
(DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
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Area of Triangle Using Trigonometry
Example 1: In The area of the triangle to the nearest tenth of an inch is…
Example 2: Determine the area of an equilateral triangle whose side length measures 5.
Example 3: An isosceles triang;e has legs of 6 inches and base angles that measure 70 degrees. What is
the area of the triangle to the nearest tenth of an inch.
Example 4: In Determine the area of the triangle.
Topic 2: Finding Missing Sides & Angles
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SOHCAHTOA
SOH CAH TOA
Labeling the Triangle
When/How to Use SOHCAHTOA
1. Identify the right triangle
2. Label your sides (opposite, adjacent, hypotenuse)
3. Determine which trigonometric function to use (sin, cosine, tangent)
4. Solve for
SOHCAHTOA Examples (DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
Example 1 Example 2
Example 3 Example 4
Example 5 Example 6
Topics 3: Law of Sines
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Law of Sine
Law of SInes is used when:
2 sides and 1 angle are given (SSA)
2 angles and any side are given (AAS or ASA)
Law of Sines Examples (DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
Examples 1 (ASA) Example 2 (AAS)
What is the value of side a?
What is the length of side b?
Example 3 (SSA) Example 4
What is the value of ? A triangle has angle measurements of 48, 36, and
96. If the shortest side of the triangle measures 18
inches, find the length of its longest side to the
nearest hundredth of an inch.
Topic 4: Law of Sine Ambiguous Case
Key Things to Remember
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No triangle can Sine is between 1 Sine can have 2 The hypotenuse is In a triangle the
have 2 obtuse and -1. possible answers, always the longest sum of the
angles. one in quadrant 1 side in a right measures of the
and one in triangle. interior angles in
quadrant 2. 180 degrees.
(DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
Example 1: One Possible Triangle
Case 1 Case 2
Example 2: Two Possible Triangles
Case 1 Case 2
Example 3: No Possible Triangles
Topic 5: Law of Cosine
Law of Cosine
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Law of cosine is used when:
2 sides and an angle are given (SAS) and you are trying to find the 3rd side
3 sides are given (SSS) and you are trying to find any angle
(DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
Example 1
In Determine the length of side AC tot he nearest tenth of an inch.
Example 2
In , the side lengths measure 5, 8, and 9 centimeters. Determine the smallest angle to the nearest
degree.
Topic 6: Trigonometric Applications
Area of a Triangle SOHCAHTOA Law of Sine Law of Cosine
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(DRAW AND LABEL THE TRIANGLE FOR EACH EXAMPLE)
Example 1
A garden in the shape of a triangle must be filled with dirt. The length of the sides are 14ft, 9ft and 6ft. A
bag of dirt can cover up to 2.5 feet for a cost of $10.50. What is the minimum amount of money spent on
dirt if the garden owner would like to cover his garden in two layers of dirt?
Example 2
A ship can use the angle of elevation to a lighthouse in order to determine how far it is from the shore. A
boat starts at point A and finds the angle of elevation to the lighthouse to measure 56 degrees. After
traveling 4.2 miles toward the lighthouse, the angle of elevation is now 72 degrees. Determine the
distance, d, the boat is from the base of the lighthouse to the nearest hundredth of a mile.
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