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Look for congruent triangles.
See solution.
To show that triangle â–³ ZMY is isosceles, let's focus first on the other two triangles on the diagram.
Let's summarize what we know about triangles â–³ Z W M and â–³ Y X M.
| Congruence | Justification |
|---|---|
| Z W≅Y X | Opposite sides of parallelogram Z W X Y are congruent (Theorem 6.3). |
| M W≅M X | M is the midpoint of W X. |
| ∠W≅∠X | Given. |
We can see that triangles △ Z W M and △ Y X M have two pairs of congruent sides, and the included angles are also congruent. According to the Side-Angle-Side (SAS) Congruence Postulate, this means that the two triangles are congruent. △ Z W M≅△ Y X M We know that corresponding sides of congruent triangles are congruent. Z M≅Y M Since these are two sides of triangle △ Z M Y, this proves that △ Z M Y is isosceles. We can summarize the steps above in a paragraph proof.
2
&Given:&& WXYZis a parallelogram
& && ∠W≅∠X
& && Mis the midpoint ofWX
&Prove:&& â–³ ZMYis isosceles
Proof.
Opposite sides of parallelogram WXYZ are congruent, so ZW≅YX. It is given that M is the midpoint of segment WX, so MW≅MX. It is also given that ∠W≅∠X, so according to the Side-Angle-Side (SAS) Congruence Postulate, △ ZWM≅△ YXM. Corresponding sides of congruent triangles are congruent, so ZM≅YM. These are two sides of triangle △ ZMY, so this triangle is isosceles.