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Help me find $\mathrm{tg}(\gamma)$: Can you please help me solve this math problem? In an isosceles triangle $c = 5; h_a = 4$. How do I find $\mathrm{tg}(\gamma)$?

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What is c? What is ha? What is $\gamma$? – Thomas Aug 6 '12 at 19:22
Maybe you clarify what is tg y? What is ha? I know that c is a side of the triangle – sizz Aug 6 '12 at 19:22
is ha the height or altitude to a? or something. – mathguy Aug 6 '12 at 19:39
@jak, $\mathrm{tg}\,\gamma$ is what you maybe know better as $\tan\,\gamma$. – J. M. Aug 7 '12 at 0:54

closed as not a real question by Gerry Myerson, William, Henning Makholm, Michael Greinecker♦, J. M. Sep 19 '12 at 9:26

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

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I'm guessing you mean the height is equal to 4, and the side length to 5. In that case, to find the tangent of the base angle you first need to find the base length, which, by Pythagoras's Theorem, you can show to be 6, or half the base, 3.

This leads to ($\gamma$ is the base angle): $$\tan \gamma = 4/3 \rightarrow \gamma \simeq 53.1^\circ$$

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