Mathematics 9

Quarter 4
Module 11
Word Problems Involving
Right Triangles
Mathematics – Grade 9
Quarter 4 – Module 11: Word Problems Involving Right Triangles
First Edition, 2020

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 Mathematics 9
Quarter 4
Module 11
Word Problems Involving Right Triangles
Introductory Message

For the Facilitator:

Welcome to the Mathematics 9 Self-Learning Module on Word Problems

Involving Right Triangles!

This Self-Learning Module was collaboratively designed, developed and

reviewed by educators from the Schools Division Office of Pasig City headed by its
Officer-in-Charge Schools Division Superintendent, Ma. Evalou Concepcion A.
Agustin, in partnership with the City Government of Pasig through its mayor,
Honorable Victor Ma. Regis N. Sotto. The writers utilized the standards set by the K
to 12 Curriculum using the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELC) in
developing this instructional resource.

This learning material hopes to engage the learners in guided and independent
learning activities at their own pace and time. Further, this also aims to help learners
acquire the needed 21st century skills especially the 5 Cs, namely: Communication,
Collaboration, Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Character while taking into
consideration their needs and circumstances.

In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the
body of the module:

Notes to the Teacher

This contains helpful tips or strategies that
will help you in guiding the learners.

As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this
module. You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them to
manage their own learning. Moreover, you are expected to encourage and assist the
learners as they do the tasks included in the module.
 For the Learner:

Welcome to the Mathematics 9 Self-Learning Module on Word Problem

Involving Right Triangles!

This module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful
opportunities for guided and independent learning at your own pace and time. You
will be enabled to process the contents of the learning material while being an active
learner.

This module has the following parts and corresponding icons:

Expectations - This points to the set of knowledge and skills

that you will learn after completing the module.

Pretest - This measures your prior knowledge about the lesson

at hand.

Recap - This part of the module provides a review of concepts

and skills that you already know about a previous lesson.

Lesson - This section discusses the topic in the module.

Activities - This is a set of activities that you need to perform.

Wrap-Up - This section summarizes the concepts and

application of the lesson.

Valuing - This part integrates a desirable moral value in the

lesson.

Posttest - This measures how much you have learned from the
entire module.
 EXPECTATIONS

• Accurately illustrate the information presented in a given word

problem;
• Use trigonometric ratios to solve real-life problems involving right
triangles; and
• Value persistence when answering the activities.

PRETEST

MULTIPLE CHOICE. Encircle the letter of the best answer.

1. An isosceles triangle has a base of 42 inches and its vertex angle is
1030 . What is the length of each of the two equal sides of the triangle?
A. 16.70 inches C. 33.73 inches
B. 26.83 inches D. 53.67 inches
2. The angle of depression from the top of a cliff 98 meters high to a boat at
sea is 550 . What is the distance of the boat from the base of the cliff?
A. 68.62 meters C. 119.64 meters
B. 80.28 meters D. 139.96 meters
3. One diagonal of a rhombus makes an angle of 420 with its side. If each side
of the rhombus has length of 5.4 centimeters, what is the length of the
longer diagonal?
A. 3.61 centimeters C. 7.22 centimeters
B. 4.01 centimeters D. 8.02 centimeters
4. One of the cables that helps stabilize a phone tower is 90 feet long and is
anchored into the ground 16 feet from the base of the tower. What is
measure of the angle that the cable makes with the ground?
A. 10.080 C. 79.760
B. 10.240 D. 90.630
5. A car leaves City A and travels 8.1 kilometers in a direction S 55 0 E. How
far south of City A is the car then?
A. 4.65 kilometers C. 11.57 kilometers
B. 6.64 kilometers D. 14.12 kilometers
 RECAP

Solve the triangle shown below.

B

𝑐
𝑎

540 A
C 16

Solution:
The given are the measure of angle A and the length of the adjacent side
of angle A.

To find the length of the hypotenuse, you can use the cosine ratio:
𝑎𝑑𝑗𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒
𝑐𝑜𝑠 𝐴 =
ℎ𝑦𝑝𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑢𝑠𝑒
16 Substitute the values and cross multiply
𝑐𝑜𝑠 540 =
𝑐
16
𝑐 = Solve
𝑐𝑜𝑠 540
𝒄 = 𝟐𝟕. 𝟐𝟐 The length of the hypotenuse

To find the length of the other leg, you can use the tangent ratio:
𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒
𝑡𝑎𝑛 𝐴 =
𝑎𝑑𝑗𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒
𝑎
𝑡𝑎𝑛 540 = 16 Substitute the values and cross multiply

𝑎 = 16 𝑡𝑎𝑛 540 Solve

𝒂 = 𝟐𝟐. 𝟎𝟐 The length of the other leg

To solve for ∠𝐵,

∠𝐴 + ∠𝐵 + ∠𝐶 = 1800
540 + ∠𝐵 + 900 = 1800
∠𝐵 + 1440 = 1800
∠𝐵 = 1800 − 1440
∠𝑩 = 𝟑𝟔𝟎
 LESSON

Word Problems Involving Right Triangles

The applications of right triangles in real-life are vast. Hence, it is
important that you will be able to accurately solve the word problems under
this lesson. The following steps are suggested whenever you are solving word
problems involving right triangles.
1. Read the problem carefully.
2. Draw a picture based on the information provided by the problem.
3. Label the parts of the triangle formed.
4. Set up trigonometric ratios to be used in solving the unknown.
5. Solve.
6. Answer the question.

Example 1. The dimensions of a rectangle are 50 centimeters and 94

centimeters. Find the measure of the angle made by the diagonal and the
shorter side.
Solution.
Draw the picture and label
Let 𝜃 = the angle made by the diagonal and the shorter side

𝜃
50 𝑐𝑚

94 𝑐𝑚

Set up trigonometric ratios and solve

𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒
𝑡𝑎𝑛 𝜃 = Trigonometric ratio to be used
𝑎𝑑𝑗𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡
94
𝑡𝑎𝑛 𝜃 = Substitute the values and solve for 𝜃
50
94 Use your calculator to compute the
𝜃 = 𝑡𝑎𝑛−1 ൬ ൰
50 answer
𝜃 = 61.990

Answer the question.

∴ The measure of the angle made by the diagonal and the shorter
side of a rectangle is 𝟔𝟏. 𝟗𝟗𝟎 .
Example 2. One of the equal sides of an isosceles triangle is 20.1 centimeters
and the vertex angle is 680 . Find the length of the base of the triangle.
Solution.
Draw the picture and label
Let 𝑥 = the length of the base of the triangle
𝑦 = the length of the half of the base of the triangle

340 340 340

𝑥 𝑦

Set up trigonometric ratios and solve

𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒
𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜃 = Trigonometric ratio to be used
ℎ𝑦𝑝𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑢𝑠𝑒
𝑦 Substitute the values and cross
𝑠𝑖𝑛 340 =
20.1 multiply
Use your calculator to compute the
𝑦 = 20.1 𝑠𝑖𝑛 340
answer
𝑦 = 11.24

Since 2𝑦 = 𝑥, thus 𝑥 = 22.48.

Answer the question.
∴ The length of the base of the triangle is 22.48 centimeters.

Example 3. Jenny stands at the window of her condo unit so that her eyes
are 53 meters above the level ground. From her location, the angle of elevation
to the top of a skyscraper is 420 . If Jenny’s condo is 116 meters away from the
skyscraper, how high is the skyscraper?
Solution.
Draw the picture and label
Let 𝑥 = the height of the skyscraper

x
420
116
53
Set up trigonometric ratios and solve
𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒
𝑡𝑎𝑛 𝜃 = Trigonometric ratio to be used
𝑎𝑑𝑗𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡
𝑥 − 53 Substitute the values and cross
𝑡𝑎𝑛 420 =
116 multiply
𝑥 − 53 = 116 𝑡𝑎𝑛 420 Solve for 𝑥
Use your calculator to compute the
𝑥 = 116 𝑡𝑎𝑛 420 + 53
answer
𝑥 = 157.45

Answer the question.

∴ The skyscraper is 157.45 meters high.

Example 4. Carl sees his school directly north of him. Cyd is 5 kilometers
from Carl and sees the same school at a bearing of N 560 W. How far is Carl
from his school?
Solution.
Draw the picture and label
Let 𝑥 = Carl’s distance from his school
𝑁

x N 𝟓𝟔𝟎 W means 560 west of north

560
340
𝑊 𝐸
5 𝑘𝑚

Set up trigonometric ratios and solve

𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒
𝑡𝑎𝑛 𝜃 = Trigonometric ratio to be used
𝑎𝑑𝑗𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡
𝑥 Substitute the values and cross
𝑡𝑎𝑛 340 =
5 multiply
Use your calculator to compute the
𝑥 = 5 𝑡𝑎𝑛 340
answer
𝑥 = 3.37

Answer the question.

∴ Carl is 3.37 kilometers away from his school.

 ACTIVITIES

Activity 1: LET’S PRACTICE!

Draw a picture that illustrates the situation.
1. A tree casts a shadow 15 feet long. The angle of elevation of the sun is
630 .
2. Rhombus LOVE have diagonals 𝐿𝑉 ̅̅̅̅ and 𝑂𝐸
̅̅̅̅ . The measure of ∠𝐿𝑂𝑉 is 1020
and the measure of each side is 12 centimeters.
3
3. A ramp has a slope .
25
4. A man at the edge of the cliff 100 meters above the sea level observes
that the angle of depression from his position to a boat at sea is 190 .
5. Sophia and Rebeka leave their house at the same time. Sophia walks on
a direction of N 220 E while Rebeka walks on a direction N 1120 E.

Activity 2: KEEP PRACTICING!

Solve each of the following problems. Round off your final answers to the
nearest hundredths.
1. The vertex angle of an isosceles triangle 410 . Each of the legs measures
32 centimeters. How long is the base of the triangle?
2. The angle of elevation of the sun is 350 . How long is the shadow cast by
a building 94 meters high?
3. A nipa hut is directly below a helicopter. If a man in the helicopter sees
a carabao 45 meters from the nipa hut at angle of depression 200 , how
far from the ground is the helicopter?
4. Steve is in the second floor of his school building, he can see the top of
a house at an angle of elevation of 380 . If the school building is 50
meters away from the house and Steve is 6 meters from the ground,
how high is the house?
5. An electric post was broken by a super typhoon. It formed a right
triangle with the ground. If the broken part made an angle of 290 with
the other part, and the topmost part of the post of the post which was
on the ground was 8 meters from the base, how tall was the post?
Activity 3: TEST YOURSELF!
Solve each of the following problems. Round off your final answers to the
nearest whole number.
1. Find the height of the building if the angle of elevation to its topmost
part changes from 320 to 490 as the observer moves 15 meters closer to
the base of the building.
2. A drone pilot will inspect two cell towers 80 miles apart. From the pilot’s
position, he finds that Tower A has a bearing of N 160 W while Tower B
is N 740 E. Which cell tower is nearer to the pilot’s current position? How
near he is from that tower?

WRAP-UP

Suggested steps in solving word problems involving right triangles:

1. Read the problem carefully.
2. Draw a picture based on the information provided by the problem.
3. Label the parts of the triangle formed.
4. Set up trigonometric ratios to be used in solving the unknown.
5. Solve.
6. Answer the question.

VALUING

Solving word problems involving right triangles is just like solving your
own problems in life. Sometimes you can quickly solve the problem without
any difficulty. However, there are times when you need to come up with a
strategy to find the correct answer. Similarly, when you are faced with a
personal problem, you can either find a solution to that or just ignore it.
Consequently, ignoring your problems can cause these small problem to build
up, becoming a big problem over time. To avoid this scenario to happen, what
are your coping strategies when faced with difficulties? Write them in your
notebook.
 POSTTEST

MULTIPLE CHOICE. Encircle the letter of the best answer.

1. An isosceles triangle has height 21 centimeters and base 30
centimeters. What will be the measure of the base angles?
A. 34.990 C. 54.460
B. 35.540 D. 55.010
2. A bow hunter is perched in a tree 18 feet off the ground. If he sees his prey
on the ground at an angle of depression of 370 , how far will the arrow have
to travel to hit his target?
A. 10.83 feet C. 23.89 feet
B. 22.54 feet D. 29.91 feet
3
3. The slope of the ramp is . What is the angle of elevation of the ramp?
25

A. 6.840 C. 10.420
B. 8.310 D. 11.230
4. Mia and Jemima are on the opposite sides of a tree. From their positions,
they measure the angles of elevation of the top of the tree as 260 and 320
respectively. How far is Mia from Jemima if the height of the tree is 35 feet?
A. 56.01 feet C. 127.77 feet
B. 71.76 feet D. 131.34 feet
5. A driver travels 20 kilometers on a bearing S 210 W. How far west of the
starting position could the driver be now?
A. 6.34 kilometers C. 7.68 kilometers
B. 7.17 kilometers D. 8.67 kilometers
 KEY TO CORRECTION

5. B 4. C 3. A 1. C 2. D
POSTTEST

position.
2. The drone pilot is nearer to cell Tower A which is 22 miles from his current
1. The building is 21 meters high.
Activity 3: TEST YOURSELF

5. The electric post is 30.93 m. long.

4. The house is 33.72 m. high.
3. The helicopter is 16.38 m. from the ground. 𝑅𝑒𝑏𝑒𝑘𝑎
2. The shadow cast by a building is 134.25 m.
1. The base of the triangle is 11.21 cm.
Activity 2: KEEP PRACTICING! 𝐸

220
190
100 𝑚.
𝑆𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑖𝑎
𝑁 5. 4.
𝐿 𝐸
15 𝑓𝑡.
12 𝑐𝑚 630
25 510

3 3. 𝑂 1. 2. 𝑉
Activity 1: LET’S PRACTICE!

5. B 4. A 3. A 2. B 1. C
PRETEST

References
Bryant, Merden, et.al. Mathematics Grade 9 Learner’s Manual. Pasig City:
Department of Education, 2014.
Landicho-Robles, Elizabeth. Trigonometry. Quezon City: MSA Publishing House,
2001.
Orines, Fernando, et.al. Next Century Mathematics 9. Quezon City: Phoenix
Publishing House, Inc., 2014.
Oronce, Orlando, and Mendoza, Marilyn. e-math: Advanced Algebra and
Trigonometry. Manila: Rex Book Store, Inc., 2007.
Sobel, Max and Lerner, Norbert. Algebra and Trigonometry. Philippines: Prentice-
Hall, Inc., 2001.