A 10-foot tall ladder is placed against a wall so that the top of the ladder is 9 feet above the ground. How far is the base of the ladder from the base of the wall along the ground?

Answer 1

The ladder, wall and distance from base of the ladder to the base of the wall (x) form a right triangle with the length of the ladder (10) being the hypotenuse and the height of the ladder (9) and x being the legs.

By the Pythagorean Theorem:

x^2 + 9^2 = 10^2

x^2 = 19

x = 4.35 feet