What is the slope of the line represented by the equation y = 7?

1 Answer
Patrick H.
Jul 30, 2016

If we tried to find the slope, we would get a number divided by 0. Dividing by 0 is impossible, so the slope is undefined .

Explanation:

Let's say we chose two points on the line, (7,-2) and (7,9) for example. Let's try to find the slope. This is our equation:

#(y_2-y_1)/(x_2-x_1)#

Let's now substitute the variables for numbers:

#y_2=9#
#y_1=-2#
#x_2=7#
#x_1=7#

#(9--2)/(7-7)=11/0#

As you can see, the number (#11#) is divided by 0. We all know that dividing by 0 is impossible. When we have situations like these, we call the slope undefined. Therefore, our slope is undefined.

Related questions
See all questions in Slope
Impact of this question
1804 views around the world
You can reuse this answer
Creative Commons License