Relationship between sine and tangent

In summary, the relationship between sine, cosine, and tangent can be explained by looking at the graph of the function. When cosine is equal to one, tan is equal to one, and when sinine is equal to one, the value of tan is undefined.
  • #1
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hey guys...so my teacher gave me this lil assignment and she said to explain (in words) the relationship between sine and tangent and cosine and tangent.i have no clue what I am doing...so if someone could PLEASE explain this to me...i will be so greatful!
thankz
 
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  • #2
sine...

hey guys...so my teacher gave me this lil assignment and she said to explain (in words) the relationship between sine and tangent and cosine and tangent.i have no clue what I am doing...so if someone could PLEASE explain this to me...i will be so greatful!
thankz
 
  • #3
what were you told in class about them? Does SOH CAH TOA mean anything of importance?
 
  • #4
no i don't think it has anything to do with that...we were looking at the graphs of sine,cosine and tangent today in class and she told us to explain the relationships...so i have so clue what she really ment
 
  • #6
yea...i already read that...and there wasn't really any helpful information.but thankz anyways
 
  • #7
I don't know how you can explain those things "in words," but I'll give it a try.

Sine, Cosine, and Tangent, are essentially defined in terms of angles and sides of a right triangle. [tex]\sin(\theta)[/tex] is a function which takes an angle of a right triangle as its input and returns the ratio of the length of the opposite side and the length of the hypotonuse. Similarly [tex]\cos(\theta)[/tex] is a function which takes an angle of a right triangle as its input and returns the ratio of the length of the adjacent side and the length of the hypotonuse. Likewise, [tex]\tan(\theta)[/tex] is a function which takes an angle of a right triangle as its input and returns the ratio of the length of the opposite side and the length of the adjacent side.
 
  • #9
If you have a point [tex] P(x,y) [/tex] on the unit circle, then [tex] x = \cos \theta [/tex], [tex] y = \sin \theta [/tex], and [tex] \tan x [/tex] is the ratio of the y-coordinate over the x-coordinate or [tex] \frac{\sin \theta}{\cos \theta} [/tex].
 
  • #10
This was also posted in the homework section. I'm merging the two threads.
 
  • #11
well, i think, seeing as you were studying the graphs, they wants you to realize the sine graph divided by cos graph equated to the tangent graph. eg they wanted you to realize the tan graph wasnt defined were cos equalled zero (division by zero impossible). and notice that the values of tan and sin were the same wen cos equalled one, etc etc.hopefully this helped.

of course this simple relation is easy to see.
sin= opposite/hypotenuse
cos= ajacent/hypotenuse

(o/h)/(a/h)= o/a

opposite/adjacent, as we well know, it the tan ratio.
 
  • #12
Gib Z said:
well, i think, seeing as you were studying the graphs, they wants you to realize the sine graph divided by cos graph equated to the tangent graph. eg they wanted you to realize the tan graph wasnt defined were cos equalled zero (division by zero impossible). and notice that the values of tan and sin were the same wen cos equalled one, etc etc.hopefully this helped.

of course this simple relation is easy to see.
sin= opposite/hypotenuse
cos= ajacent/hypotenuse

(o/h)/(a/h)= o/a

opposite/adjacent, as we well know, it the tan ratio.


Thats what I said with SOH CAH TOA
 
  • #13
o well i got it...it has to do with the the period,amplitude,max,min,domain and range.thankz for ur help everyone!
 

1. What is the definition of sine and tangent?

Sine and tangent are both trigonometric functions used in mathematics to relate the angles of a triangle to the lengths of its sides. Sine is defined as the ratio of the opposite side to the hypotenuse, while tangent is defined as the ratio of the opposite side to the adjacent side of a right triangle.

2. How are sine and tangent related?

Sine and tangent are related by the Pythagorean identity, which states that the square of the sine of an angle plus the square of the cosine of the same angle is always equal to 1. This means that if you know the value of one trigonometric function, you can use the Pythagorean identity to find the value of the other.

3. What is the difference between sine and tangent?

The main difference between sine and tangent is that they represent different ratios in a right triangle. Sine represents the ratio of the opposite side to the hypotenuse, while tangent represents the ratio of the opposite side to the adjacent side. Additionally, sine is always bounded between -1 and 1, while tangent can have any real value.

4. How are sine and tangent used in real life?

Sine and tangent have many real-life applications, particularly in fields such as engineering, physics, and navigation. They are used to calculate distances, angles, and forces in various structures and systems. For example, engineers use sine and tangent to design bridges and buildings, while sailors use them to navigate using the stars.

5. Can sine and tangent be negative?

Yes, sine and tangent can both be negative. Since they are ratios of sides in a right triangle, their values depend on the signs of the individual sides. In quadrants II and III of the unit circle, both sine and tangent are negative. Additionally, tangent can be negative in quadrant IV, when the adjacent side is negative and the opposite side is positive.

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