GRE Math : How to graph a line

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GRE Math

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Example Questions

Example Question #102 : Coordinate Geometry

Which of the following terms are linear?

Possible Answers:

yz

sin(x)

all of these terms are linear

x

x2

Correct answer:

x

Explanation:

Linear terms have only one variable in a product and no exponents other than 0 or 1. x2 has an exponent other than 0 or 1 so it is not linear. yz has two variables so is also not a linear term. Linear terms cannot have functions of variables either, so sin(x) is not linear.  

We can also think of these terms somewhat like graphing equations. Linear equations are straight lines. You might recognize, for example, that x2 should be a parabola. Sin(x) has a graph that looks like a harmonic wave. Clearly these two shaps aren't straight lines!

Example Question #1 : Graphing

The slope of a line segment with points  and  is:

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The formula for calculating slope is rise over run, or the difference in  divided by the difference in . In this case, the difference in  is 5 while the difference in  is 5, resulting in a slope of  or 1.

Example Question #1 : Graphing

What is the slope of the linear line that passes through the origin and the point ?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Slope of a line given 2 points can be found using 

.  

Therefore  

or 

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