2. Medians and Altitudes of Triangles
Sign In
Use the fact that BD is perpendicular to CA, and CD and DA are congruent segments.
Perpendicular bisector.
Name | Definition |
---|---|
Altitude | An altitude is a segment from a vertex to the line containing the opposite side and perpendicular to the line containing that side. |
Median | A median of a triangle is a segment with endpoints being a vertex of a triangle and the midpoint of the opposite side. |
Perpendicular Bisector | A perpendicular bisector is a segment bisector that is also perpendicular to this segment. |
Now let's consider the triangle marked in the picture.
As we can see, CD and DA are congruent segments, so D is a midpoint of CA. Also, BD is perpendicular to opposite of B, side CA. Therefore, BD is a perpendicular bisector, because it connects a vertex of a triangle with the midpoint of the opposite side and also is perpendicular to the opposite side.