Remember that longer sides in a triangle are opposite to larger angles, and vice versa. But what if two (or more) sides have the same length?
As you might have guessed, if two sides have the same length, then the opposite angles have the same measure. And vice-versa: if two angles have the same measure, then the opposite sides have the same length.
So, we obtain the following important properties of isosceles and equilateral triangles:
- A triangle is equilateral if and only if all of its angles are of
- A triangle is isosceles if and only if it has two congruent angles.
Note: The statement above encompasses two theorems:
The isosceles triangle theorem:
If a triangle is isosceles, then the base angles are congruent.
The converse isosceles triangle theorem:
If two angles in a triangle have the same measure, then the triangle must be isosceles.
What is the measure of in the triangle below?
Since two sides are congruent, we conclude that is isosceles. Consequently, the base angles must have the same measure:
Now, since the internal angles of any triangle sum to we have
Finally, substituting into the equation for the measure of gives
So
What is the measure of $\angle{B}$ in the triangle $\triangle{ABC}$ above?
a
|
$71^{\circ}$ |
b
|
$69^{\circ}$ |
c
|
$70^{\circ}$ |
d
|
$68^{\circ}$ |
e
|
$72^{\circ}$ |
What is the measure of $\angle{C}$ in the triangle $\triangle{ABC}$ above?
a
|
$44^{\circ}$ |
b
|
$42^{\circ}$ |
c
|
$43^{\circ}$ |
d
|
$47^{\circ}$ |
e
|
$45^{\circ}$ |
What is the measure of in the triangle below?
First, from the diagram, notice that and are supplementary. Therefore,
Since is an isosceles triangle where , the base angles must be equal:
Finally, since the interior angles of any triangle sum to we have
Find the value of $y$ in the triangle shown above.
a
|
$135^{\circ}$ |
b
|
$141^{\circ}$ |
c
|
$140^{\circ}$ |
d
|
$138^{\circ}$ |
e
|
$137^{\circ}$ |
What is the measure of $\angle{C}$ in the triangle $\triangle{ABC}$ above?
a
|
$43^{\circ}$ |
b
|
$42^{\circ}$ |
c
|
$37^{\circ}$ |
d
|
$40^{\circ}$ |
e
|
$39^{\circ}$ |
What is the measure of in the isosceles triangle above?
Since is an isosceles triangle with base , we have that Hence,
Substituting this value into the expression for the measure of gives We conclude that
The triangle $\triangle ABC$ shown above is isosceles with base $\overline{BC}.$ What is the measure of $\overline{BC}?$
a
|
$12$ |
b
|
$15$ |
c
|
$18$ |
d
|
$16$ |
e
|
$10$ |
What is the measure of $\overline{AC}$ in the isosceles triangle $ABC$ above?
a
|
$6$ |
b
|
$8$ |
c
|
$9$ |
d
|
$10$ |
e
|
$7$ |
In the figure below, What is the measure of
First, notice that is an equilateral triangle. Consequently, all of the interior angles must be equal to
Also, since is an isosceles triangle, the base angles must have equal measure:
Now, since we're told that we have
Finally, in , we have
What is the measure of $\angle {D}?$
a
|
$33^{\circ}$ |
b
|
$37^{\circ}$ |
c
|
$35^{\circ}$ |
d
|
$32^{\circ}$ |
e
|
$34^{\circ}$ |
In the figure above $\overline{AB} \cong \overline{CD}.$ What is the measure of the angle $\angle A ?$
a
|
$52^\circ$ |
b
|
$53^\circ$ |
c
|
$58^\circ$ |
d
|
$57^\circ$ |
e
|
$55^\circ$ |