Pythagorean Theorem – TI-84 Evo Math Program

Pythagorean Theorem program on a TI-84 Evo

Type the two sides of a right triangle you know and this program gives you the third, whether that's the hypotenuse or a missing leg.

Send it to your calculator

Plug the calculator into your computer with a USB cable, then use the button below. If something is not working, see troubleshooting.

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Open it on the calculator

  1. Press the prgm key. The PROGRAMMING menu opens.
    The prgm key highlighted on the TI-84 Evo keyboard
    TI-84 Evo PROGRAMMING menu with 1: TI-Basic highlighted
  2. Press enter to select TI-Basic. The list of TI-Basic programs opens.
    TI-84 Evo TI-Basic program list showing 1: PYTHAG
  3. Press enter on PYTHAG in the program list, which puts prgmPYTHAG on the home screen.
  4. Press enter to run it. The program opens with a menu asking which side of the triangle you're missing.
    Pythagorean Theorem program menu on the TI-84 Evo asking which side is missing, with Hypotenuse and A leg options

Find the hypotenuse

  1. Press enter to choose Hypotenuse. The program asks for the two legs, one at a time. Type each leg and press enter after it. For legs of 3 and 4, the moment you enter the second one it answers Hypotenuse=5.
    Pythagorean Theorem program on the TI-84 Evo finding the hypotenuse of a 3-4-5 triangle

Find a missing leg

  1. Run the program again. A single enter on the home screen reruns it, and the menu comes back.
  2. Scroll down to A leg and press enter. Now it asks for the leg you know, then the hypotenuse. With a leg of 5 and a hypotenuse of 13, it fills in Other leg=12.
    Pythagorean Theorem program on the TI-84 Evo finding the missing leg of a 5-12-13 triangle

Good to know

  • It's the Pythagorean theorem, worked out for you. The program solves a² + b² = c² for whichever side you asked about: √(a² + b²) for the hypotenuse, √(c² − a²) for a leg.
  • Sides don't have to be whole numbers. Decimals work at every prompt: legs of 1.5 and 2 give Hypotenuse=2.5.
  • Answers that aren't whole come out as decimals. Legs of 2 and 4 give 4.472135955 rather than the exact √20. If you want the tidy radical form, the Radical Simplifier program turns 20 into 2√5.
  • Rerun it with one keypress. Pressing enter on the home screen repeats whatever you ran last, so right after a run, a single enter brings the menu straight back.
  • The hypotenuse is always the longest side. In the A leg option, if the leg you type is as long as the hypotenuse or longer, the program answers "Hypotenuse must be longest" instead of dropping you on an error screen.
    Pythagorean Theorem program on the TI-84 Evo answering Hypotenuse must be longest when the leg is bigger than the hypotenuse

More TI-84 Evo Math Programs

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