To use two points to find the slope of a line, use the following formula:
In general, the slope of a line connecting the points (x 1 , y 1 ) and (x 2 , y 2 ) is
The slope of a line that contains the points A(4, 6) and B(0, −3) is calculated as follows:
To use an equation of a line to find the slope, put the equation into the slope-intercept form:
y = mx + b, where the slope is m.To find the slope of the equation 5 x + 3y = 6, rearrange it:
The slope is
Finding Lengths
When a line segment is parallel to the x-axis in the coordinate plane, its length is the absolute value of the difference of its x-
coordinates.
When a line segment is parallel to the y-axis in the coordinate plane, its length is the absolute value of the difference of its y-
coordinates.