MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.

1
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

7.1 EXPLORING EQUIVALENT TRIGONOMETRIC FUNCTIONS

Consider the following graph:
What are some possible equations for this
graph?

Since trigonometric functions are periodic, there are many equivalent trigonometric
expressions.
Learning Goal:
To be able to write an equivalent trigonometric functions by using:
1. Horizontal Translations
2. Symmetry
3. Complementary Angles
4. Related Acute Angles

1. Horizontal Translations
Consider the graphs of sine and cosine below. Could you shift the graph left or right to
produce the same graph?

Example: Shifting cos(x) right produces the same graph
2

Example: Shifting sin(x) right 2π produces the same graph

MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.1
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

i) Horizontal translations of sine or cosine that are multiples of the period result in an
equivalent expression.

sin   sin(  2 ) cos   cos(  2 )


ii) Horizontal translations of involving both the sine and cosine function result in an
2
equivalent expression.

   
sin   cos    cos   sin    
 2  2

2. Symmetry
Recall from earlier units that:
 EVEN functions have symmetry about the y-axis, so f ( x)  f ( x)
 ODD functions have rotational symmetry about the origin so f ( x)   f ( x)

Determine when the following functions have even or odd symmetry. Use a sketch or
graphing software to determine this.
Function Sketch Type of Symmetry

y  sin 

y  cos 

y  tan 

Example 1 Write an expression that is equivalent to the following expressions.

 5  
a) cos  b) sin  
 3  6
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.1
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

3. Complementary Angles

Determine the exact values of the six trigonometric ratios (use special triangles). Describe
any relationships that you see.

  Relationships:

sin    sin   
3 6
 
cos   cos  
3 6
 
tan   tan  
3 6
 
csc   csc  
3 6
 
sec   sec  
3 6
 
cot    cot   
3 6

Any right triangle, where θ is the measure of one of the acute angles, has a complementary

angle of   for the other angle.
2

Find the complementary angle in the following triangle.


Complete the following table using the relationships you noticed above. 
8
Do not use a calculator.

  3 
sin   0.3827 sin   
8  8 
  3 
cos   0.9239 cos  
8  8 
  3 
tan   0.4142 tan  
8  8 
  3 
csc   csc  
8  8 
  3 
sec   sec  
8  8 
  3 
cot    cot   
8  8 
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.1
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

From your observations, we form the cofunction identities:

     
sin   cos    cos   sin     tan   cot    
2  2  2 

Example 2 Use the cofunction identities to write an expression that is equivalent to the
following expressions.

  5 
a) sin   b) cos 
6  12 

4. Related Acute Angles

Revisiting the CAST rule:
Given that θ is the acute angle from Quadrant I, it will be used as the related acute angle
for the principal angles in Quadrants II, III and IV.
Think: Will the ratios be the same as they were in Quadrant I? If no, how will they be
different?
Complete the statements in each quadrant. Remember the CAST rule.

Quadrant II

sin(  ) 

cos(  ) 

tan(  ) 
 
 
Quadrant III Quadrant IV

sin(  )  sin(2  ) 

cos(  )  cos(2  ) 

tan(  )  tan(2  ) 
Example 3 Use related acute angles to write an expression that is equivalent to the
following expressions.

 5   5 
a) tan  b) sin  
 3   6 
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.2
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

7.2 COMPOUND ANGLE FORMULAS

 compound angle – an angle created by ___________ or ___________ 2 or more angles

 you can use compound angle formulas to obtain _________ values for trig ratios

 you can use compound angle formulas to show _________________

Addition Formulas Subtraction Formulas

sin( a  b)  sin a cos b  cos a sin b sin( a  b)  sin a cos b  cos a sin b
cos(a  b)  cos a cos b  sin a sin b cos(a  b)  cos a cos b  sin a sin b

tan( a  b)  tan a  tan b tan( a  b)  tan a  tan b

1  tan a tan b 1  tan a tan b

Example 1 Determine the exact value of each trigonometric ratio.

π π  7π 
a) sin   b) tan 
3 2  12 

Example 2

4 12 π 3π
If sinx  and siny   and 0  x  and  y  2π , evaluate cos(x y) .
5 13 2 2
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.3
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

7.3 DOUBLE ANGLE FORMULAS

The double angle formulas show how trig ratios for double angles, 2θ, are related to trig ratios
of the original angle, θ.

Double Angle Formulas

Sine Cosine Tangent

cos 2  cos 2   sin 2 

sin 2  2 sin  cos cos 2  2 cos 2  1 tan 2  2 tan 
1 tan 2 
cos 2  1  2 sin 2 

Example 1
Express as a single trigonometric ratio and then evaluate.
 
cos 2  sin 2
8 8

Example 2

4 
Determine the values of sin2 given cos   and     .
5 2
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.4
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

7.4 PROVING TRIGONOMETRIC IDENTITIES

The following trigonometric identities can be used to prove more complex trigonometric
identities.

Identities Based on
Identities Derived From Relationships
Definitions
RECIPROCAL IDENTITIES QUOTIENT IDENTITIES PYTHAGOREAN IDENTITIES
1 sin 
csc   tan   sin 2   cos2   1
sin  cos
1 cos
sec   cot   1  tan2   sec2 
cos sin 
1
cot   1  cot 2   csc2 
tan 
DOUBLE ANGLE ADDITION/SUBTRACTION
FORMULAS FORMULAS
sin(a  b)  sin a cos b  cos a sin b
SINE sin 2  2 sin  cos 
sin(a  b)  sin a cos b  cos a sin b

cos 2  cos 2   sin 2 

cos(a  b)  cos a cos b  sin a sin b
COSINE cos 2  2 cos 2   1
cos(a  b)  cos a cos b  sin a sin b
cos 2  1  2 sin 2 
tan a  tan b
tan(a  b) 
2 tan  1  tan a tan b
TAN tan 2 
1  tan 2  tan a  tan b
tan(a  b) 
1  tan a tan b

EQUIVALENT TRIG FUNCTIONS

HORIZONTAL COFUNCTION
PERIODIC SYMMETRY
TRANSLATIONS IDENTITIES
   
sin   sin(  2 ) cos   cos( ) sin   cos   sin   cos   
 2 2 
   
cos   cos(  2 ) sin( )   sin( ) cos   sin   cos   sin   
 2 2 
 
tan( )   tan( ) tan   cot    
2 
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.4
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

Example 1 Prove.

 
a) cos  x    sin x
2 

cos( x  y ) 1  tan x tan y

b) 
cos( x  y ) 1  tan x tan y

c) tan 2 x  2 tan 2 x sin 2 x  sin 2 x

MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.5
Trigonometric Equations and Identities

7.5 SOLVING LINEAR TRIGONOMETRIC EQUATIONS

Due to the periodic nature of trigonometric functions, trigonometric equations have an

_________________ number of solutions. For this reason, there is usually a specified interval
for the solutions.

Example 1
How many solutions do the following functions have for any value of y when 0  x  2 ?

a) sinx b) cos2x c) sin4x

Example 2
Determine the solutions for the following equation, where 0  x  2 .

- 5cosx  3  2

Example 3
Determine the solutions for the following equation on the interval 0  x  2 .

1
cos2x  
2
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.5
Trigonometric Equations and Identities
Example 4
Solve 2sinxcox  cos2x for the interval 0  x  2 .

Example 5
Today, the high tide in Matthews Cove, New Brunswick, occurs at midnight. The water level at
high tide is 7.5m. The depth, d metres, of the water in the cove at time t hours is modeled by
π
the equation d(t)  4  3.5cos t . Jenny is planning a day trip to the cove tomorrow, but the
6
water needs to be at least 2m deep for her to maneuver her sailboat safely. How can Jenny
determine the times when it will be safe for her to sail into Matthews Cove?
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.6
Trigonometric Identities and Equations

7.6 SOLVING QUADRATIC TRIGONOMETRIC EQUATIONS

To solve a quadratic trigonometric equations:

 factor
 quadratic formula
 use a Pythagorean identity, compound angle formula or double angle formula to reduce
the number of trigonometric functions in the equation

Example 1

Solve each equation for x in the interval 0  x  2 .

a) sin2 x  sinx  2

b) 2sin2 x  3sinx 1  0
MHF 4U – Unit 7 Lesson 7.6
Trigonometric Identities and Equations
Example 2

For each equation, use a trigonometric identity to create a quadratic equation. Then solve the
equation for x in the interval [0, 2π].

3sinx 3cos2x  2