Example

Verifying that y=5x4y = -5x - 4 and x5y=5x - 5y = 5 are Perpendicular

To determine whether the lines y=5x4y = -5x - 4 and x5y=5x - 5y = 5 are perpendicular, find the slope-intercept form of each equation and check if their slopes are negative reciprocals.

First equation: y=5x4y = -5x - 4 is already in slope-intercept form. Comparing it to y=mx+by = mx + b, the slope is m1=5m_1 = -5.

Second equation: Solve x5y=5x - 5y = 5 for yy. Subtract xx from both sides: 5y=x+5-5y = -x + 5 Divide both sides by 5-5: y=15x1y = \frac{1}{5}x - 1 The slope is m2=15m_2 = \frac{1}{5}.

Check for negative reciprocals: The slopes 5-5 and 15\frac{1}{5} have opposite signs and are reciprocals. Verify by computing their product:

ight) = -1$$ Because the product of the slopes is $$-1$$, the lines are perpendicular.

0

1

Updated 2026-05-03

Contributors are:

Who are from:

Tags

OpenStax

Elementary Algebra @ OpenStax

Ch.4 Graphs - Elementary Algebra @ OpenStax

Algebra

Math

Prealgebra

Intermediate Algebra @ OpenStax

Ch.3 Graphs and Functions - Intermediate Algebra @ OpenStax

Related
Learn After