Hypotenuse

In geometry, a hypotenuse is the longest side of a right-angled triangle, the side opposite the right angle. The length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle can be found using the Pythagorean theorem, which states that the square of the length of the hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides. For example, if one of the other sides has a breadth of 3 metres (when squared, 9 m²) and the other has a length of 4 m (when squared, 16 m²), then their squares add up to 25 m². The length of the hypotenuse is the square root of this, or 5 m.