Calculating the Vertex Angle of an Isosceles Triangle | A Step-by-Step Guide

vertex angle of an isosceles triangle

The vertex angle of an isosceles triangle is the angle formed at the vertex (the point where the two equal sides of the triangle meet) of the triangle

The vertex angle of an isosceles triangle is the angle formed at the vertex (the point where the two equal sides of the triangle meet) of the triangle. In an isosceles triangle, there are two congruent (equal) sides and two congruent angles opposite those sides. The vertex angle is the angle that is not congruent to the other two angles of the triangle.

To find the measure of the vertex angle, you can use the following steps:

1. Identify the two equal sides of the isosceles triangle.
2. Determine one of the congruent base angles by dividing the sum of the other two angles (excluding the base angles) by 2. This is possible because the angles in any triangle add up to 180 degrees. So, if the two base angles are x, the sum of the other two angles would be 180 – 2x.
3. Subtract the measure of the base angle you found in step 2 from 180 degrees. This will give you the measure of the vertex angle since all angles in a triangle add up to 180 degrees.

For example, let’s say we have an isosceles triangle with two equal sides measuring 6 cm each and a base angle of 60 degrees. To find the measure of the vertex angle, we follow the steps:

1. The two equal sides in this example are 6 cm each.
2. The sum of the other two angles (excluding the base angles) is 180 – 2(60) = 60 degrees.
3. Subtracting 60 degrees from 180 degrees gives us the measure of the vertex angle: 180 – 60 = 120 degrees.

Therefore, the vertex angle of the isosceles triangle in this example measures 120 degrees.

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