Big Ideas Math Geometry, 2014
BI
Big Ideas Math Geometry, 2014 View details
5. Equations of Parallel and Perpendicular Lines
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Exercise 18 Page 160

A line perpendicular to a horizontal line must be vertical.

Equation: x=4
Graph:

Practice makes perfect
Looking at the given equation, we can see that its slope is equal to . y=- 3 ⇔ y= x-3 Therefore, the given line is horizontal. A line perpendicular to a horizontal line must be vertical. We can write a general equation for all lines perpendicular to the given equation.

x=a We also want the parallel line to pass through the point ( 4,- 6). Therefore, a must be equal to 4. x= 4 Finally, we can verify our answer by graphing both lines on the same coordinate plane. If they are perpendicular, they will intersect at a right angle.

We can see by looking at the graphs of the functions that they are indeed perpendicular.