Question

Find the perimeter of the right triangle.

Answer 1

So before we can find the perimeter, we need to find the hypotenuse. Since this is a right triangle, we can use the pythagorean theorem. The equation for that is $a^2+b^2=c^2$ , in which a and b are the legs of the triangle and c is the hypotenuse.

With this info, we can form our equation: $9^2+12^2=c^2$

Firstly, solve the exponents: $81+144=c^2$

Next, combine everything on the left side: $225=c^2$

Next, square root both sides, and your hypotenuse will be 15 = c.

Now that we have all the triangle side lengths, just add everything up: $P=9+12+15=36$

In short, the perimeter is 36 inches.