Pythagorean Theorem Word Problems

Jane and Miguel are siblings. They go to different schools. Jane walks 6 blocks east from home. Miguel walks 8 blocks north. How many blocks apart would the two schools be if you could walk straight from one school to the other? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

A piece of paper that Brittany has is 11 inches tall and 8 inches wide. She draws a straight line diagonally across the paper. How long is the line she drew? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

John leaves school to go home. He walks 6 blocks North and then 8 blocks west. How far is John from the school? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

The hypotenuse of a right triangle is 12 feet and one of its legs is 3 feet. What is the length of the other leg? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

A soccer field is a rectangle 90 meters wide and 120 meters long. The coach asks players to run from one corner to the other corner diagonally across the field. How far do the players run? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

Lisa drives her car 46 km south and then 13 km east. How far is she from her starting point? Which equation could be used to solve the problem?

Oh No! I can't get to my soccer ball because I can't remember how far away from the house the ladder needs to be!

The wall is 15 feet high. The ladder is 20 feet long.

How far does the ladder need to be from the house? Round to the nearest tenth).

• 13.0 feet

• 25 feet

• 15.2 feet

• 13.2 feet

The slide at the playground has a height of 6 feet. The base of the slide measured on the ground is 8 feet. What is the length of the slide?

• 8 feet

• 5.29 feet

• 10 feet

• 14 feet

The bottom of a 13-foot straight ladder is set into the ground 5 feet away from a wall. When the top of the ladder is leaned against the wall, what is the distance above the ground it will reach?

• 12 feet

• 13.9 feet

• 169 feet

• 18 feet

A baseball "diamond" is actually a square with sides of 90 feet. If a runner tries to steal second base, how far must the catcher, at home plate, throw to get the runner "out"? (Distance across the diagonal)

• 180 feet

• 90 feet

• 13.4 feet

• 127.3 feet