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How to Solve Triangle Equations

While it is true that a triangle has three sides to it, when solving triangle equations, there are six parts: three sides and three angles. While this can be slightly confusing, it is advantageous when solving triangle equations. With the help of a graphing calculator, some basic trigonometry and at least three parts of a triangle, it is easy to solve a triangle equation.

Graphing calculator

Instructions

- 1
  Draw out the triangle that is described in your problem. Label the given sides and angles to help you visualize the answer.
- 2
  Determine if you need to solve for tangent, cosine or sine by seeing what angles are given to you in the problem. Cosine is adjacent over hypotenuse, while sine is opposite over hypotenuse and tangent is sine over cosine.
- 3
  Plug in the angle in your graphing calculator by pressing either the "SIN," "COS" or "TAN" button, depending on if you are solving for sine, cosine or tangent. Enter in your angles as specified by the formulas given in Step 2.
- 4
  Press "ENTER" to solve the equation.

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