A right triangle has one leg of length $6$ units and a hypotenuse of length $10$ units. What is the length of the missing leg? If necessary, round your answer to the nearest tenth.

• A. $7$ units
• B. $4$ units
• C. $9$ units
• D. $8$ units

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the given elements of the right triangle: one leg length is 6 units, and the hypotenuse length is 10 units.
2. Recall the Pythagorean theorem, which relates the sides of a right triangle: \(a^2 + b^2 = c^2\), where \(c\) is the hypotenuse and \(a\), \(b\) are the legs.
3. Assign the known values to the formula: let the missing leg be \(x\), so \$6^2 + x^2 = 10^2$.
4. Rearrange the equation to solve for \(x^2\): \(x^2 = 10^2 - 6^2\).
5. Calculate \(x\) by taking the square root of both sides: \(x = \sqrt{10^2 - 6^2}\). Then, round the result to the nearest tenth if necessary.