How do you write an equation in standard form given that the line has slope m=5 through (-6,9)?

1 Answer
May 26, 2015

If a line has slope m and passes through a point (x_0, y_0) then it can be expressed in point-slope form by the equation:

y - y_0 = m(x - x_0)

So in your example, we would write:

y - 9 = 5(x - (-6))

It can also be expressed in point-intercept form - that is in the form:

y = mx + c

We know m=5 and an example point (-6, 9) that will satisfy this equation, so we have:

9 = 5(-6)+c = -30 + c

Add 30 to both sides to get c = 39. So our line can be written in point-intercept form as:

y = 5x + 39