The concept of slope in the function y=mx y=mx expresses the angle between the line and the positive direction of the X X axis.
M M represents the slope of the function – the rate of change of Y Y relative to the rate of change of X X .
When two points on a certain line are known, the slope of the line can be calculated from them. 

If M>0 M>0 is positive - the line rises
If M<0 M<0 is negative - the line falls
If M=0 M=0 the line is parallel to the X X axis. (In a graph like this, where b=0 b=0 the line coincides with the X X axis.)

This calculation is done using the following formula: 

 m=(Y2Y1)(X2X1)  m=\frac {(Y2-Y1)}{(X2-X1)}

where the two points (X1,Y1) \left(X1,Y1\right) and (X2,Y2) \left(X2,Y2\right) are on the mentioned line. 

It is important to emphasize that the slope is constant for any line. 

Note:

The greater the slope – the steeper the graph.
The smaller the slope – the more moderate – flatter the graph.
How will you remember this?
Remember that when the slope is equal to 0, the graph is parallel to the X-axis – it is very, very moderate – flat.
Therefore, as it increases, the graph will be steeper.

Suggested Topics to Practice in Advance

  1. Function
  2. Linear Function
  3. The Linear Function y=mx+b

Practice Slope

Examples with solutions for Slope

Exercise #1

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, we need to determine the slope of the line depicted on the graph.

First, understand that the slope of a line on a coordinate plane indicates how steep the line is and the direction it is heading. Specifically:

  • A positive slope means the line rises as it goes from left to right.
  • A negative slope means the line falls as it goes from left to right.

Let's examine the graph given:

  • We see that the line starts at a higher point on the left and descends to a lower point on the right side.
  • As we move from the left side of the graph towards the right, the line goes downwards.

This downward trajectory clearly indicates a negative slope because the line is declining as we move horizontally left to right.

Therefore, the slope of this function is Negative.

The correct answer is, therefore, Negative slope.

Answer

Negative slope

Exercise #2

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the slope of the line shown on the graph, we perform a visual analysis:

  • We examine the orientation of the line from left to right.
  • The red line starts at a higher point on the left and descends to a lower point on the right.
  • This indicates a downward movement, which corresponds to a negative slope.

Therefore, by observing the direction of the line, we conclude that the slope of the function is negative. This positional evaluation confirms that the correct answer is negative slope.

Answer

Negative slope

Exercise #3

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Observe the given graph and the plotted line.
  • Step 2: Determine the direction of the line as it moves from left to right across the graph.
  • Step 3: Understand that a line moving downwards from left to right represents a negative slope.

Now, let's work through these steps:

Step 1: The graph shows a straight line that starts higher on the left side and descends towards the right side.

Step 2: As the line moves from left to right, it descends. This is a key indicator of the slope type.

Step 3: A line that moves downward from the left side to the right side of the graph (decreasing in height as it proceeds to the right) is characteristic of a negative slope. Conversely, a positive slope would show a line ascending as it moves rightward.

Therefore, the solution to the problem is the line has a negative slope.

Answer

Negative slope

Exercise #4

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, let's analyze the given graph of the function to determine the slope's sign.

The slope of a line on a graph indicates the line's direction. A line with a positive slope rises as it moves from left to right, indicating that for every step taken to the right (along the x-axis), we move upward. Conversely, a line with a negative slope falls as it moves from left to right, meaning each step to the right results in moving downward.

Examining the graph provided, the red line starts higher on the left and goes downward towards the right visually. This indicates that the line is rising as it goes from left to right, which confirms it has a positive slope.

Therefore, the solution to the problem, regarding the slope of the line, is that it is a Positive slope.

Answer

Positive slope

Exercise #5

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the slope of the line segment shown in the graph, follow these steps:

  • Identify the line segment on the graph; it's shown as a red line from one point to another.
  • Examine the direction the line segment travels from the leftmost point to the rightmost point.
  • Visually analyze whether the line segment is rising or falling as it moves from left to right.

Here is the detailed analysis:
- The red line segment starts lower on the left side and ends higher on the right side.
- This suggests that as we move from left to right, the line is rising.
- In terms of slope, a line that rises as it moves from left to right has a positive slope.

Therefore, the slope of the line segment is positive.

Thus, the correct answer is Positive slope.

Answer

Positive slope

Exercise #6

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

For this problem, we need to determine the nature of the slope for a given straight line on a graph.

Based on the graph provided, the red line starts at a higher point on the left (Y-axis) and moves downward toward a lower point on the right (X-axis). This indicates that as one moves from left to right across the graph, the function decreases in value. Consequently, this is typical of a line that has a negative slope.

The slope of a line is typically defined as the "rise over the run," or the ratio of the change in the vertical direction to the change in the horizontal direction. Here, as we proceed from left to right, the line goes "downwards" (negative rise), establishing a negative slope.

Thus, we can conclude that the slope of the line is negative.

Therefore, the solution to the problem is Negative slope.

Answer

Negative slope

Exercise #7

For the function in front of you, the slope is?

XY

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the slope of the line, we'll examine the direction of the line segment on the graph:

  • The line depicted moves from the top left, passing through a point with higher y y -coordinate values, to the bottom right, ending at a point with lower y y -coordinate values.
  • This movement indicates that as x x increases (the direction to the right along the x x -axis), the y y -coordinate decreases.
  • When the y y -value reduces as the x x -value grows, the slope m m is negative.

Since the line descends from left to right, the slope of the line is negative.

Therefore, the slope of the function is a negative slope.

Answer

Negative slope

Exercise #8

Given the linear function:

y=102x y=10-2x

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, we'll follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Recognize the given function y=102x y = 10 - 2x and compare it to the standard linear form y=mx+b y = mx + b .
  • Step 2: Identify the coefficient of x x which is 2 -2 .
  • Step 3: Understand that this coefficient 2 -2 is the slope or rate of change of the function.

Now, let's work through each step:
Step 1: The linear function provided is y=102x y = 10 - 2x .
Step 2: Comparing this with the standard linear form y=mx+b y = mx + b , we see that the coefficient of x x is 2 -2 .
Step 3: Therefore, the rate of change (or the slope) of the function is m=2 m = -2 .

Thus, the rate of change of the linear function is m=2 m = -2 .

Answer

m=2 m=-2

Exercise #9

Given the linear function:

y=6x y=-6x

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, let's follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Identify the form of the given function
  • Step 2: Compare the equation with the standard slope-intercept form
  • Step 3: Extract the value of the slope from the equation

Now, let's work through each step:

Step 1: The given linear function is y=6x y = -6x . This is presented in the form y=mx+b y = mx + b , where m m is the slope and b b is the y-intercept.

Step 2: Comparing y=6x y = -6x with y=mx+b y = mx + b , we see that the equation lacks a constant term, indicating b=0 b = 0 . The slope m m is the coefficient of x x .

Step 3: The coefficient of x x is 6-6, so the slope m m is 6-6. Thus, the rate of change of the function is 6-6.

Therefore, the solution to the problem is m=6 m = -6 .

Answer

m=6 m=-6

Exercise #10

Given the linear function:

y=14x y=1-4x

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

The given linear function is y=14x y = 1 - 4x . This can be rearranged to fit the standard format of a linear equation, y=mx+b y = mx + b , as y=4x+1 y = -4x + 1 .

In this form, the slope m m is simply the coefficient of x x . Here, m=4 m = -4 .

The slope of the linear function represents the rate of change of the function with respect to x x , meaning for every unit increase in x x , the value of y y decreases by 4 units.

Therefore, the rate of change of the function is m=4 m = -4 , which is option 4 among the given choices.

Thus, the solution to the problem is m=4 m = -4 .

Answer

m=4 m=-4

Exercise #11

Which best describes the function below?

y=23x y=2-3x

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the characteristic of the function y=23x y = 2 - 3x , we will evaluate the slope:

  • The given function is in the form y=mx+b y = mx + b , which indicates a linear equation. Here, y=23x y = 2 - 3x can be rearranged as y=3x+2 y = -3x + 2 , showing that m=3 m = -3 .
  • The slope m m is 3-3.
  • In a linear function, the sign of the slope m m determines the function's behavior:
    • If the slope m m is positive (m>0 m > 0 ), the function is increasing.
    • If the slope m m is negative (m<0 m < 0 ), the function is decreasing.
    • If the slope m=0 m = 0 , the function is constant.
  • Since m=3 m = -3 , which is negative, we conclude that the function is decreasing.

Therefore, the function described by y=23x y = 2 - 3x is decreasing.

Answer

The function is decreasing.

Exercise #12

Given the linear function:

y=x4 y=x-4

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

The problem asks to find the rate of change of the linear function y=x4 y = x - 4 . This function is in the form of y=mx+b y = mx + b , where:

  • m m is the slope, representing the rate of change of the function.
  • b b is the y-intercept, but it is not relevant for finding the rate of change.

For the function y=x4 y = x - 4 , we can compare it with the standard form y=mx+b y = mx + b to identify:

m=1 m = 1 .

Therefore, the rate of change of the function is determined by the coefficient of x x , which is 1.

Hence, the rate of change of the function is m=1 m = 1 .

The correct answer is: m=1 m = 1 .

Answer

m=1 m=1

Exercise #13

Given the linear function:

y=2x+1 y=-2x+1

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the rate of change of the function given by the equation y=2x+1 y = -2x + 1 , we will follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Recognize that the equation is written in slope-intercept form, y=mx+b y = mx + b , where m m is the slope, or rate of change.
  • Step 2: Identify the coefficient of x x in the given equation. Here, the equation y=2x+1 y = -2x + 1 reveals that the coefficient of x x is 2-2.

This coefficient 2-2 directly represents the slope m m of the function.

Therefore, the rate of change of the function is m=2 m = -2 .

Answer

m=2 m=-2

Exercise #14

Given the linear function:

y=14x+13 y=14x+13

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, we need to find the rate of change, which is represented by the slope of the linear function.

The function provided is in the form y=mx+b y = mx + b , where m m is the slope. This is known as the slope-intercept form of a linear equation.

Given the equation y=14x+13 y = 14x + 13 , we can directly identify that the coefficient of x x , which is 14, represents the slope m m , or the rate of change of the function.

Therefore, the rate of change, or the slope, of this function is m=14 m = 14 .

Answer

m=14 m=14

Exercise #15

Given the linear function:

y=14+5x y=14+5x

What is the rate of change of the function?

Video Solution

Step-by-Step Solution

To determine the rate of change of the linear function y=14+5x y = 14 + 5x , we need to identify the structure of the equation. We notice that it is given in the slope-intercept form y=mx+b y = mx + b , where m m is the slope or the rate of change.

In the equation y=14+5x y = 14 + 5x , the term involving x x is 5x 5x . Thus, the coefficient of x x , which is 5 5 , represents the rate of change or slope of the function.

Therefore, the rate of change of the function is m=5 m = 5 .

Answer

m=5 m=5