Ramon Teves Pastor Memorial – Dumaguete Science High School

Prepared By: Miss Kassandra Venzuelo

1.1 Undefined
Terms
1.2 Rays and
Line Segments

Objectives:

a) illustrate the undefined terms in Geometry;

b) define and illustrates segments, rays, and

angles
Know What? Geometry is everywhere. Remember these wooden blocks that you played with as
a kid? If you played with these blocks, then you have been “studying” geometry since you were a
child. For example, if you were to move the four triangles at the center of the picture, so that the
vertex in the middle was on the outside, what shape would you make?

Geometry: The study of shapes and their spatial properties.

The legs of the tripod touch the table at three points.

The legs suggest lines, and the table surface
suggests a plane.
Geometry depends on a common understanding of
terms such as point, line, and plane. Because these
terms cannot be mathematically defined using other
known words, they are called undefined terms .

Building Blocks

Point: An exact location in space. A point describes a location, but has no size. Dots are used to
represent points in pictures and diagrams.

These points are said “Point A,” “Point L”, and “Point F.” Points are labeled with a CAPITAL letter.

Line: Infinitely many points that extend forever in both directions.

A line, like a point, does not take up space. It has direction, location and is always straight. Lines are
one-dimensional because they only have length (no width). A line can be named or identified using
any two points on that line or with a lower-case, italicized letter.

This line can be labeled PQ←→, QP←→ or just g. You would say “line PQ,” “line QP,” or “line g,”
respectively. Notice that the line over the PQ←→ and QP←→ has arrows over both the P and Q. The
order of P and Q does not matter.
Plane: Infinitely many intersecting lines that extend forever in all directions.

Think of a plane as a huge sheet of paper that goes on forever. Planes are considered to be two-
dimensional because they have a length and a width. A plane can be classified by any three points
in the plane.

This plane would be labeled Plane ABC or Plane M. Again, the order of the letters does not matter.
Sometimes, planes can also be labeled by a capital cursive letter. Typically, the cursive letter written
in a corner of the plane.

Example 1: Which term best describes how San Diego, California, would be represented on a globe?

A. point B. line C. plane

Solution: A city is usually labeled with a dot, or point, on a globe. A.

Example 2: Which geometric object best models the surface of a movie screen?

A. point B. line C. plane

Solution: The surface of a movie screen extends in two dimensions: up and down and left to right. This
description most closely resembles a plane, C.

Beyond the Basics

Now we can use point, line, and plane to define new terms.

Space: The set of all points expanding in three dimensions.

Think back to the plane. It extended along two different lines: up and down, and side to side. If we
add a third direction, we have something that looks like three-dimensional space, or the real-world.

Collinear: Points that lie on the same line.

Example 3: Which points are collinear?

Solution: P,Q,R,S, and T are collinear because they are all on line w. If a point U was above or below
line w, it would be non-collinear.

Coplanar: Points and/or lines within the same plane. Example 4:

a) List two other ways to label Plane J. b) List one other way to label line h.
c) Are K and F collinear? Are they coplanar? d) Are E,B and F coplanar?
Solution:

a) Plane BDG, Plane KAG, among several others. Any combination of three coplanar points that are
not collinear would be correct.

b) AB←→ or any combination of two of the letters A,C or B in any order.

c) Yes, they lie on the same line. Yes, you need three points to create a plane, so any two or three
points are coplanar.

d) Yes, any three points are coplanar.

Endpoint: A point at the end of a line.

Line Segment: Part of a line with two endpoints. Or a line that stops at both ends.

Line segments are labeled by their endpoints, AB¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ or BA¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯. Notice that the bar over the
endpoints has NO arrows. Order does not matter.

Ray: Part of a line with one endpoint and extends forever in the other direction.

A ray is labeled by its endpoint and one other point on the line.

Of lines, line segments and rays, rays are the only one where order matters. When labeling, always
write the endpoint under the side WITHOUT the arrow, CD−→− or DC←−−.

Intersection: A point or set of points where lines, planes, segments or rays cross each other.

Example 5: How do the figures below intersect?

Solution: The first three figures intersect at a point, P,Q and R, respectively. The fourth figure, two planes,
intersect in a line, l. And the last figure, three planes, intersect at one point, S.

Example 6: Answer the following questions about the picture to the right.

a) How do the two planes intersect? b) Is line l coplanar with Plane V or W?

c) Are R and Q collinear? d) What point is non-coplanar with either plane?

e) List three coplanar points in Plane W.

Solution:

a) In a line. b) No. c) Yes. d) S e) Any combination of P,O,T and Q would be correct.

 Geometry Basics
Geometry uses 3 undefined terms: point, line, and plane

Figure Properties Drawing Symbol Read as

*has no size A
Point * indicates a definite location
Point A

* is straight B
A Line AB or
* has no thickness Line BA
Line
* extends indefinitely in two Line l
opposite directions l

* is part of a line Segment AB or

Segment B segment BA
* has two endpoints A
* is part of a line
B
Ray AB
* has only one endpoint
Ray
*extends indefinitely in one NOT ray BA
Direction A

* is a flat surface A
C Plane ABC
B
* has no thickness (3 letters)
Plane Or
* extends indefinitely in all
Directions Plane X
X
* has two rays with a A Angle ABC
common endpoint Or
Angle * sides: BA, BC B1 Angle B
Or
Angle 1
* vertex: B C

Coplanar points: points that are in the same plane.

Collinear points: points that are in the same line.

Further Beyond
With these new definitions, we can make statements and generalizations about these geometric
figures. This section introduces a few basic postulates.

Postulates: Basic rules of geometry. We can assume that all postulates are true, much like a definition.

Theorem: A statement that can be proven true using postulates, definitions, and other theorems that
have already proven.

The only difference between a theorem and postulate is that a postulate is assumed true because it
cannot be shown to be false, a theorem must be proven true.

Postulate 1-1: There is exactly one (straight) line through any two points.

Postulate 1-2: There is exactly one plane that contains any three non-collinear points.

Postulate 1-3: A line with points in a plane also lies within that plane.

Postulate 1-4: The intersection of two distinct lines will be one point.

Postulate 1-5: The intersection of two planes is a line.

When making geometric drawings, you need to be sure to be clear and label. For example, if you
draw a line, be sure to include arrows at both ends. Make sure you label your points, lines, and planes
clearly, and refer to them by name when writing explanations.

Example 7: Draw and label the intersection of line AB and ray CD at point C.

Solution: It does not matter the placement of A or B along the line nor the direction that ray CD
points.

Example 8: Describe the picture below using all the geometric terms you have learned.

Solution: Line AB and point D are coplanar in Plane P, while line BC and line AC intersect at
point C which is non-coplanar.