Question #N973
In a right triangle, the length of the hypotenuse is 10 and the length of one leg is 6. What is the length of the other leg?
A. 4
B. 8
C. $\sqrt{64}$
D. $\sqrt{136}$
Correct Answer is: D
We can use the Pythagorean theorem to solve for the missing leg. The Pythagorean theorem states that in a right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse (the longest side) is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides. Let $x$ be the length of the missing leg. We have the equation: $10^2 = 6^2 + x^2$. Simplifying, we get $100 = 36 + x^2$. Subtracting 36 from both sides, we get $64 = x^2$. Taking the square root of both sides, we get $x = \sqrt{64}$ or $x = -\sqrt{64}$. Since a length cannot be negative, the length of the other leg is $x = \sqrt{64}$.