Video Transcript
Find the length of the perpendicular from the point negative 19, negative 13 to the 𝑦-axis.
If we sketch a coordinate grid with the 𝑥-axis and the 𝑦-axis and we say that this is our point negative 19, negative 13, it’s located 19 units to the left of zero and 13 units down. Perpendicular to the 𝑦-axis will be horizontal lines. We’re asking the question how far away from the 𝑦-axis is the point negative 19, negative 13. Our point is 19 units to the left of the 𝑦-axis, which means we can say that its length is 19 units. We also might point out that when we have the coordinate form 𝑥, 𝑦, the perpendicular distance from the 𝑦-axis will always be the absolute value of 𝑥. Here, the absolute value of negative 19 is positive 19.
