What is the importance of knowing the concept of transversals?

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Parallel lines and transversals are two important geometry concepts because they result in special angle relationships you’ll find in different postulates and theorems and use for solving geometry proofs.

First, two definitions:

Parallel lines: Never intersect, or cross, one another

Transversal line: Intersects two or more lines or line segments

When a transversal line crosses a pair of parallel lines, many types of angles can be created. Let’s go over the many different pairs of angles created by parallel lines and transversals:

Adjacent Supplementary Angles

Supplementary angles are two or more angles that add to 180 degrees. Adjacent angles share a side and a vertex. So, adjacent supplementary angles add to 180 degrees and share a side and vertex.

Try to spot the adjacent supplementary angles:

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As you can see, there are many. A and B, B and D, D and C, and C and A are all examples of adjacent supplementary angles. Then, E and F, F and H, and H and G are also adjacent supplementary angles.

Vertical Angles

Vertical angles, sometimes called opposite angles, are opposite each other in two intersecting lines. As the vertical angle theorem says that vertical angles are always congruent angles, the angle measures are the same.

A and D, as well as B and C, are examples of vertical angles in the below diagram. Can you spot some other vertical angle pairs?

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Answer: E and H as well as F and G are also vertical angle pairs created from these parallel lines and transversal.

Alternate Interior Angles

Interior angles are inside a set of parallel lines. Alternate angles are on the opposite sides of a transversal line.

In the diagram below, C and F are a pair of interior angles, as they’re inside the parallel lines. They’re alternate because they’re on the opposite side of the transversal. When a pair of angles have these two properties, they are considered congruent, alternate interior angles.

Can you spot the other pair of alternate interior angles below?

Image credit: Desmos

As you can see, D and E are also alternate interior angles.

Alternate Exterior Angles

Alternate exterior angles are the same as alternate interior angles, except they lie on the outside of two parallel lines.

In the below diagram, A and H are considered alternate exterior angles because they lie on the outside of the two parallel lines and the opposite sides of the transversal line.

Look for other pairs of alternate exterior angles:

Image credit: Desmos

Answer: B and G are also alternate exterior angles.

Angles of Parallel Lines and Transversals

When you see parallel lines and transversals on your geometry worksheets, don’t fear, and remember these key angle characteristics:

• When a transversal line crosses a pair of parallel lines, you’ll find many pairs of supplementary angles, or angles that add to 180 degrees.
• Angles directly opposite each other, called vertical angles, are congruent.
• Alternate interior angles and alternate exterior angles are two other pairs of corresponding angles that are always congruent. Alternate angles are on opposite sides of the transversal, interiors are inside the parallel lines, and exteriors are outside them.

Once familiar with the names for these pairs of angles, you will be well on your way in solving any geometry proof or problem related to parallel lines and transversals.

More Math Homework Help

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Line intersecting 2 coplanar lines at 2 points

In geometry, a transversal is a line that passes through two lines in the same plane at two distinct points. Transversals play a role in establishing whether two or more other lines in the Euclidean plane are parallel. The intersections of a transversal with two lines create various types of pairs of angles: consecutive interior angles, consecutive exterior angles, corresponding angles, and alternate angles. As a consequence of Euclid's parallel postulate, if the two lines are parallel, consecutive interior angles are supplementary, corresponding angles are equal, and alternate angles are equal.

Eight angles of a transversal. (Vertical angles such as α {\displaystyle \alpha } and γ {\displaystyle \gamma } are always congruent.)		Transversal between non-parallel lines. Consecutive angles are not supplementary.	Transversal between parallel lines. Consecutive angles are supplementary.

Angles of a transversal

A transversal produces 8 angles, as shown in the graph at the above left:

• 4 with each of the two lines, namely α, β, γ and δ and then α1, β1, γ1 and δ1; and
• 4 of which are interior (between the two lines), namely α, β, γ1 and δ1 and 4 of which are exterior, namely α1, β1, γ and δ.

A transversal that cuts two parallel lines at right angles is called a perpendicular transversal. In this case, all 8 angles are right angles [1]

When the lines are parallel, a case that is often considered, a transversal produces several congruentseveral supplementary angles. Some of these angle pairs have specific names and are discussed below: corresponding angles, alternate angles, and consecutive angles.[2][3]: Art. 87 

Alternate angles

Alternate angles are the four pairs of angles that:

• have distinct vertex points,
• lie on opposite sides of the transversal and
• both angles are interior or both angles are exterior.

It is a very useful topic of mathematics

If the two angles of one pair are congruent (equal in measure), then the angles of each of the other pairs are also congruent.

Proposition 1.27 of Euclid's Elements, a theorem of absolute geometry (hence valid in both hyperbolic and Euclidean Geometry), proves that if the angles of a pair of alternate angles of a transversal are congruent then the two lines are parallel (non-intersecting).

It follows from Euclid's parallel postulate that if the two lines are parallel, then the angles of a pair of alternate angles of a transversal are congruent (Proposition 1.29 of Euclid's Elements).

Corresponding angles

For an alternate use see Corresponding angles (congruence and similarity)

Corresponding angles are the four pairs of angles that:

• have distinct vertex points,
• lie on the same side of the transversal and
• one angle is interior and the other is exterior.

Two lines are parallel if and only if the two angles of any pair of corresponding angles of any transversal are congruent (equal in measure).

Proposition 1.28 of Euclid's Elements, a theorem of absolute geometry (hence valid in both hyperbolic and Euclidean Geometry), proves that if the angles of a pair of corresponding angles of a transversal are congruent then the two lines are parallel (non-intersecting).

It follows from Euclid's parallel postulate that if the two lines are parallel, then the angles of a pair of corresponding angles of a transversal are congruent (Proposition 1.29 of Euclid's Elements).

If the angles of one pair of corresponding angles are congruent, then the angles of each of the other pairs are also congruent. In the various images with parallel lines on this page, corresponding angle pairs are: α=α1, β=β1, γ=γ1 and δ=δ1.

Consecutive interior angles

Consecutive interior angles are the two pairs of angles that:[4][2]

• have distinct vertex points,
• lie on the same side of the transversal and
• are both interior.

Two lines are parallel if and only if the two angles of any pair of consecutive interior angles of any transversal are supplementary (sum to 180°).

Proposition 1.28 of Euclid's Elements, a theorem of absolute geometry (hence valid in both hyperbolic and Euclidean Geometry), proves that if the angles of a pair of consecutive interior angles are supplementary then the two lines are parallel (non-intersecting).

It follows from Euclid's parallel postulate that if the two lines are parallel, then the angles of a pair of consecutive interior angles of a transversal are supplementary (Proposition 1.29 of Euclid's Elements).

If one pair of consecutive interior angles is supplementary, the other pair is also supplementary.

Other characteristics of transversals

If three lines in general position form a triangle are then cut by a transversal, the lengths of the six resulting segments satisfy Menelaus' theorem.

Related theorems

Euclid's formulation of the parallel postulate may be stated in terms of a transversal. Specifically, if the interior angles on the same side of the transversal are less than two right angles then lines must intersect. In fact, Euclid uses the same phrase in Greek that is usually translated as "transversal".[5]: 308, nfote 1 

Euclid's Proposition 27 states that if a transversal intersects two lines so that alternate interior angles are congruent, then the lines are parallel. Euclid proves this by contradiction: If the lines are not parallel then they must intersect and a triangle is formed. Then one of the alternate angles is an exterior angle equal to the other angle which is an opposite interior angle in the triangle. This contradicts Proposition 16 which states that an exterior angle of a triangle is always greater than the opposite interior angles.[5]: 307 [3]: Art. 88 

Euclid's Proposition 28 extends this result in two ways. First, if a transversal intersects two lines so that corresponding angles are congruent, then the lines are parallel. Second, if a transversal intersects two lines so that interior angles on the same side of the transversal are supplementary, then the lines are parallel. These follow from the previous proposition by applying the fact that opposite angles of intersecting lines are equal (Prop. 15) and that adjacent angles on a line are supplementary (Prop. 13). As noted by Proclus, Euclid gives only three of a possible six such criteria for parallel lines.[5]: 309–310 [3]: Art. 89-90 

Euclid's Proposition 29 is a converse to the previous two. First, if a transversal intersects two parallel lines, then the alternate interior angles are congruent. If not, then one is greater than the other, which implies its supplement is less than the supplement of the other angle. This implies that there are interior angles on the same side of the transversal which are less than two right angles, contradicting the fifth postulate. The proposition continues by stating that on a transversal of two parallel lines, corresponding angles are congruent and the interior angles on the same side are equal to two right angles. These statements follow in the same way that Prop. 28 follows from Prop. 27.[5]: 311–312 [3]: Art. 93-95 

Euclid's proof makes essential use of the fifth postulate, however, modern treatments of geometry use Playfair's axiom instead. To prove proposition 29 assuming Playfair's axiom, let a transversal cross two parallel lines and suppose that the alternate interior angles are not equal. Draw a third line through the point where the transversal crosses the first line, but with an angle equal to the angle the transversal makes with the second line. This produces two different lines through a point, both parallel to another line, contradicting the axiom.[5]: 313 [6]

In higher dimensions

In higher dimensional spaces, a line that intersects each of a set of lines in distinct points is a transversal of that set of lines. Unlike the two-dimensional (plane) case, transversals are not guaranteed to exist for sets of more than two lines.

In Euclidean 3-space, a regulus is a set of skew lines, R, such that through each point on each line of R, there passes a transversal of R and through each point of a transversal of R there passes a line of R. The set of transversals of a regulus R is also a regulus, called the opposite regulus, Ro. In this space, three mutually skew lines can always be extended to a regulus.

References

1. ^ "Transversal". Math Open Reference. 2009. (interactive)
2. ^ a b Rod Pierce (2011). "Parallel Lines". MathisFun. (interactive)
3. ^ a b c d Holgate, Thomas Franklin (1901). Elementary Geometry. Macmillan.
4. ^ C.Clapham, J.Nicholson (2009). "Oxford Concise Dictionary of Mathematics" (PDF). Addison-Wesley. p. 582.
5. ^ a b c d e Heath, T.L. (1908). The thirteen books of Euclid's Elements. Vol. 1. The University Press.
6. ^ A similar proof is given in Holgate 1901, Art. 93

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