C1.5 Coordinate Geometry

AS-Level Maths:
Core 1
for Edexcel
C1.5 Coordinate
geometry
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1 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The distance between two points

Contents
The mid-point of a line segment

Calculating the gradient of a straight line
The equation of a straight line
Parallel and perpendicular lines
Examination-style questions

The Cartesian coordinate system
The Cartesian coordinate system is named after the French

mathematician René Descartes (1596 – 1650).
Points in the (x, y) plane are defined by their perpendicular
distance from the x- and y-axes relative to the origin, O.
The coordinates of a point P are
written in the form P(x, y).
The x-coordinate, or abscissa,
tells us the horizontal distance
from the y-axis to the point.
The y-coordinate, or ordinate,
tells us the vertical distance from
the x-axis to the point.

Given the coordinates of two points, A and B, we can find the

distance between them by adding a third point, C, to form a
right-angled triangle. We then use Pythagoras’ theorem.

Generalization for the distance between two points
What is the distance between two general

points with coordinates A(x1, y1) and B(x2, y2)?
The horizontal distance between the points is x2 – x1 .

The vertical distance between the points is y2 – y1 .
Using Pythagoras’ Theorem, the square of the distance
between the points A(x1, y1) and B(x2, y2) is
( x2  x1 ) 2 + ( y2  y1 ) 2
The distance between the points A(x1, y1) and B(x2, y2) is
( x2  x1 ) 2 + ( y2  y1 ) 2

Worked example
Given the coordinates of two points we can use the formula

( x2  x1 ) 2 + ( y2  y1 ) 2
to directly find the distance between them. For example:
What is the distance between the points

A(5, –1) and B(–4, 5)?
x1 y 1 x2 y 2
A(5, –1) B(–4, 5)
( 4  5)2 + (5  1)2 = ( 9)2 + 6 2

= 81+ 36
= 117
= 3 13

Contents


Finding the mid-point of a line segment

Generalization for the mid-point of a line
In general, the coordinates of the mid-point of the line

segment joining (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) are given by:
 x1 + x2 y1 + y2 
 , 
 2 2 
y
(x2, y2)
x1 + x2 is the mean of the
2 x-coordinates.
(x1, y1)  x1 + x2 y1 + y2 
 , 
 2 2  y1 + y2 is the mean of the
2 y-coordinates.
0 x

Finding the mid-point of a line segment
The mid-point of the line segment joining the point (–3, 4)

to the point P is (1, –2). Find the coordinates of the point P.
Let the coordinates of the points P be (a, b). We can then write
 3 + a 4 + b 
 ,  = (1, –2)
 2 2 
Equating the x-coordinates: Equating the y-coordinates:

3 + a 4+b
=1 = 2
2 2
–3 + a = 2 4 + b = –4
a=5 b = –8
The coordinates of the point P are (5, –8)

Contents


Calculating gradients

Finding the gradient from two given points
If we are given any two points (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) on a line we
can calculate the gradient of the line as follows:
change in y y
the gradient = (x2, y2)
change in x
y2 – y1
Draw a right-angled triangle (x1, y1)
between the two points on x2 – x1
the line as follows:
y2  y1 0
the gradient, m = x
x2  x1


Contents


The equation of a straight line can be written in several forms.

You are probably most familiar with the equation written in the
form y = mx + c.
The value of m tells us the gradient
y
of the line.
The value of c tells us where the
m line cuts the y-axis.
1
c
This is called the y-intercept and it
has the coordinates (0, c).
For example, the line y = 3x + 4 has
0 x
a gradient of 3 and crosses the
y-axis at the point (0, 4).

A straight line can be defined by:

one point on the line and the gradient of the line
two points on the line
If the point we are given is the y-intercept and we are also
given the gradient of the line, we can write the equation of that
line directly using y = mx + c. For example:
A line passes through the point (0, –4) and has a

gradient of 52 . What is the equation of the line?
Using y = mx + c with m = 52 and c = –4 we can write the

equation of the line as
2
y= x4
5
Finding the equation of a line
Finding the equation of a line given a point on the line

and the gradient
Suppose we are given the gradient of a line but that the point
given is not the y-intercept. For example:
A line passes through the point (2, 5) and has a
gradient of 2. What is the equation of the line?
Let P(x, y) be any point on the line.

y
We can then write the gradient as P(x, y)
y 5 A(2, 5) y–5
x2 x–2
But the gradient is 2 so 0 x
y 5
=2
x2
Rearranging:
y 5
=2
x2
y – 5 = 2(x – 2)
y – 5 = 2x – 4
y = 2x + 1
So, the equation of the line passing through the point (2, 5)
with a gradient of 2 is y = 2x + 1.
Now let’s look at this for the general case.

Suppose a line passes through A(x1, y1) with gradient m.

y Let P(x, y) be any other point on the
P(x, y) line.
A(x1, y1) y  y1
y – y1 The gradient of AP =
x – x1 x  x1
y  y1
0 x So =m
x  x1
This can be rearranged to give y – y1 = m(x – x1).
In general:
The equation of a line through A(x1, y1) with gradient m is

y – y1 = m(x – x1)

Finding the equation of a line given two points on the

line
A line passes through the points A(3, –2) and
B(5, 4). What is the equation of the line?
Let P(x, y) be any other point on the line.

y  ( 2)
y The gradient of AP, mAP =
P(x, y) x 3
B(5, 4)
4  ( 2)
The gradient of AB, mAB =
0 x 53
A(3, –2)
But AP and AB are parts of the
same line so their gradients must
be equal.
Putting mAP equal to mAB gives the equation

y  ( 2) 4  ( 2)
=
x 3 53
y+2
= 3
x 3
y + 2 = 3(x – 3)
y + 2 = 3x – 9
y = 3x – 11
So, the equation of the line passing through the points A(3, –2)
and B(5, 4) is y = 3x – 11.
Now let’s look at this for the general case.

Suppose a straight line passes through the points A(x1, y1) and
B(x2, y2) with another point on the line P(x, y).
y The gradient of AP = the gradient of AB.
P(x, y)
B(x2, y2) y  y1 y2  y1
So =
A(x1, y1) x  x1 x2  x1
y  y1 x  x1
Or =
0 x y2  y1 x2  x1
The equation of a line through A(x1, y1) and B(x2, y2) is

y  y1 x  x1
=
y2  y1 x2  x1

One more way to give the equation of a straight line is in the

form
ax + by + c = 0.
This form is often used when the required equation contains
fractions. For example, the equation
y = 34 x  21
can be rewritten without fractions as
4y – 3x + 2 = 0.
It is important to note that any straight line can be written in
the form ax + by + c = 0.
In particular, equations of the form x = c can be written in the
form ax + by + c = 0 but cannot be written in the form y = mx + c.


Contents


Parallel lines
If two lines have the same gradient they are parallel.
Show that the lines 3y + 6x = 2 and y = –2x + 7 are parallel.
We can show this by rearranging the first equation so that

it is in the form y = mx + c.
3y + 6x = 2
3y = –6x + 2
–6x + 2
y=
3
y = –2x + 2/3
The gradient, m, is –2 for both lines and so they are parallel.

Exploring perpendicular lines

Perpendicular lines
If the gradients of two lines have a product

of –1 then they are perpendicular.
In general, if the gradient of a line is m, then the gradient of

1
the line perpendicular to it is m .
Find the equation of the perpendicular bisector of the

line joining the points A(–2, 2) and B(4, –1).
The perpendicular bisector of the line AB has to pass through

the mid-point of AB.
Let’s call the mid-point of AB point M, so
 2 + 4 2 + ( 1) 
M is the point  ,  = (1, 2)
1
 2 2 
Perpendicular lines
The gradient of the line joining A(–2, 2) and B(4, –1) is

1  2 3 1
mAB = = = 
4  ( 2) 6 2
The gradient of the perpendicular bisector of AB is therefore 2.
Using this and the fact that it passes through the point (1, 21 )
we can use y – y1 = m(x – x1) to write
y  21 = 2( x  1)
2 y  1= 4( x  1)
2 y  1= 4 x  4
2 y  4x + 3 = 0
So, the equation of the perpendicular bisector of the line
joining the points A(–2, 2) and B(4, –1) is 2y – 4x + 3 = 0.

Sketching straight line graphs
Suppose we want to sketch the straight line with the equation

2y + 3x – 12 = 0.
It is sufficient to find two points on the line:
the y-intercept y
To find the y-intercept put x = 0
in the equation of the line: 6
2y – 12 = 0
y=6
the x-intercept
0 4 x
To find the x-intercept put y = 0
in the equation of the line:
3x – 12 = 0
x=4

Contents


Examination-style question
The line l1 in the following diagram has equation

3x – 4y + 6 = 0
The line l2 is perpendicular to the line l1 and passes through
the point (2, 4).
The lines l1 and l2 cross the x-axis at the points A and B
respectively.
y
l2 l1 a) Find the equation of the line l2.
b) Find the length of AB.
A 0 B x

a) Rearranging the equation of l1 to the form y = mx + c gives

3x – 4y + 6 = 0
4y = 3x + 6
y = 34 x + 3
2
So the gradient of l1 is 34 .
Since l2 is perpendicular to l1 its gradient is – 34 .
Using y – y1 = m(x – x1) with this gradient and the point (2, 4) we
can write the equation of l2 as:
y – 4 = – 34 (x – 2)
3y – 12 = –4x + 8
4x + 3y – 20 = 0
b) The point A lies on the line with equation 3x – 4y + 6 = 0.

When y = 0 we have 3x + 6 = 0
x = –2
So A is the point (–2, 0).
The point B lies on the line with equation 4x + 3y – 20 = 0.
When y = 0 we have 4x – 20 = 0
x=5
So B is the point (5, 0).
 The length of AB is 5 – (–2) = 7

C1.5 Coordinate Geometry

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AS-Level Maths:

1 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The distance between two points

The mid-point of a line segment

2 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The Cartesian coordinate system is named after the French

3 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

Given the coordinates of two points, A and B, we can find the

4 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

What is the distance between two general

The horizontal distance between the points is x2 – x1 .

5 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

Given the coordinates of two points we can use the formula

What is the distance between the points

( 4  5)2 + (5  1)2 = ( 9)2 + 6 2

The distance between two points

The mid-point of a line segment

7 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

8 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

In general, the coordinates of the mid-point of the line

9 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The mid-point of the line segment joining the point (–3, 4)

Equating the x-coordinates: Equating the y-coordinates:

The distance between two points

The mid-point of a line segment

11 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

12 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

13 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The distance between two points

The mid-point of a line segment

14 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The equation of a straight line can be written in several forms.

15 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

A straight line can be defined by:

A line passes through the point (0, –4) and has a

Using y = mx + c with m = 52 and c = –4 we can write the

Finding the equation of a line given a point on the line

Let P(x, y) be any point on the line.

Now let’s look at this for the general case.

18 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

Suppose a line passes through A(x1, y1) with gradient m.

The equation of a line through A(x1, y1) with gradient m is

19 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

Finding the equation of a line given two points on the

Let P(x, y) be any other point on the line.

Putting mAP equal to mAB gives the equation

21 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The equation of a line through A(x1, y1) and B(x2, y2) is

22 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

One more way to give the equation of a straight line is in the

23 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

The distance between two points

The mid-point of a line segment

24 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

If two lines have the same gradient they are parallel.

Show that the lines 3y + 6x = 2 and y = –2x + 7 are parallel.

We can show this by rearranging the first equation so that

25 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

26 of 33 © Boardworks Ltd 2005

If the gradients of two lines have a product

In general, if the gradient of a line is m, then the gradient of

Find the equation of the perpendicular bisector of the

The perpendicular bisector of the line AB has to pass through