9 Department of Education

National Capital Region

SCHOOLS DIVISION OFFICE
MARIKINA CITY

MATHEMATICS
Quarter 3 – Module 9:
Problems Involving Similarity of Triangles
and Right Triangles

Writers: Roselyn R. Baracuso

Cover Illustrator: Joel J. Estudillo

DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE

 What I Need to Know
now
Hello Grade 9 learners!

In this module, you will learn how to:

Solve problems that involve triangle similarity.

Solve problems that involve right triangles.

The module is divided into two lessons, namely:

Lesson 1 Problems Involving Similarity of Triangles
Lesson 2 Problems Involving Right Triangles

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. solve problems that involve triangle similarity;
2. solve problems that involve right triangles; and
3. appreciate the importance of triangle similarity and right triangles
in solving real-life problems.

What I Know

Choose the letter that corresponds to the correct answer.

1. Campsites F and G are on opposite sides of a lake. A survey crew

made the measurement shown on the diagram. What is the distance
between the two campsites?

A. 42.3 m
B. 47.4 m
C. 73.8 m
D. 82.8 m

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DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
2. Use the information in the diagram to determine the height of the
tree to the nearest foot.
A. 72 ft.
B. 60 ft.
C. 80 ft.
D. 264 ft.

3. A building 50 feet high casts a 75-ft shadow. Sarah casts a 6-ft shadow.
The triangle formed by the building and its shadow is similar to the triangle
formed by Sarah and her shadow. How tall is Sarah?
A. 3 ft. C. 5 ft.
B. 4 ft. D. none of the above

4. The two sides of one of the similar triangles are 8 cm and 21 cm.
If in the other triangle, the side that corresponds to the 8-cm side is
40 cm, how long is the side that corresponds to the 21-cm side?
A. 90 cm C. 100 cm
B. 95 cm D. 105 cm

5. In the figure, a flagpole is in front of a 24 m building. The shadows

of the building and the flagpole on the level ground are 4 m and 1.5 m,
respectively. Find the height of the flagpole.
A. 7 m
B. 8 m
C. 9 m
D. 10 m

6. The dimensions of a rectangular rose garden are 10 and 12 meters.

How long is the diagonal of the garden?
A. 2√61 C. 4√61
B. 3√61 D. 5√61

3
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
7. Sally walks 4 miles due north and then 3 miles due east. How far
has she walked from the starting point?
A. 5 miles
B. 6 miles
C. 7 miles
D. 8 miles

8. A ladder is placed 5 ft away from a house. The ladder comes up to 12 ft on

the side of the house. How long is the ladder?
A. 12 ft C. 14 ft
B. 13 ft D. 15 ft

9. A captain is on a geo-cache-hunt. His GPS tells him that he is 40 m

away from the treasure. He walks 24 m due west. The GPS compass
now tells him that the treasure is due south from where he is standing.
How far south does he need to go to find it?
A. 12 m
B. 22 m
C. 32 m
D. 42 m

10. What is the hypotenuse of a triangle that has 8 cm leg and a height of 12 cm.
A. 3√10 cm C. 5√10 cm
B. 4√10 cm D. 6√10 cm

4
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Lesson 1 Problems Involving Similarity of Triangles

What’s In
Use the diagram to complete the following:

? 18
1. ∆ABC~ _____ 4. =
20 ?

𝐴𝐵 𝐵𝐶 𝐴𝐶
2. = = 5. y = _____
? ? ?
20 ?
3. = 6. x = _____
? 12

Questions:
1.What mathematical concept did you apply to solve the missing parts
of the given triangle?
2. When do we say that two objects are similar?

What’s New
How high is Eiffel Tower?
Do you know how tall the Eiffel Tower is?
Is there a way to find out without actually
measuring it? According to surveyors is that
on a sunny day, its shadow is 328 feet long.
What could we do to solve this problem?
What ideas do you have in determining its
height?

This Photo by Unknown Author is

licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

5
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What is It
Similar triangles may show up everything in real life even if we are
unable to notice them at first. The use of similar triangles is very important
where it is beyond our reach to physically measure the distances and heights
with simple measuring instruments. The following problems are some only of
the many applications of similar triangles in real-life.

Example 1:

Erin, who is 1.60 m tall, casts a shadow that is 1.25 m long. Her shadow
extends to the end of a tree’s shadow when she stands 4.75 m from the tree.
What is the height of the tree?

Illustration:

Solution:
Let x be the height of the tree.

x 1.6 m

6m 1.25 m

ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒

=
ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑛 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑛
𝑥 6
= 1.25 , resulting equation
1.6
1.25 𝑥 = 6(1.6) , applying cross multiplication
1.25𝑥 = 9.6 , simplifying 6(1.6)
1.25𝑥 9.6
= , applying DPE
1.25 1.25

Therefore, the height of the tree is 7.68 meters.

Example 2:

Determine the height of the shadow of a cat that is placed between a flashlight
and a wall. The cat is 50 cm in length. The flashlight is 90 cm away from the
wall and 20 cm from the cat.

6
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
Illustration:
90 cm

50 cm

20 cm

Solution:
Let x be the height of the shadow of the cat.

ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑙
=
ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑠ℎ𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡
𝑥 90
= 20 , resulting equation
50
20𝑥 = 50(90) , applying cross multiplication
20𝑥 = 4500 , simplifying 50(90)
20𝑥 4500
= 20 , applying DPE
20

x = 225 Therefore, the height of the of the shadow of the cat is 225 cm.

Example 3:

A new bridge is going to be built across a river, but the width of the river
cannot be measured directly. Find the width of the river to the nearest
whole number.

7
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
Solution:
Let 𝐴𝐵 be the distance across the river.
∆ABC~∆DEC
𝐴𝐵 𝐴𝐶
=
𝐷𝐸 𝐷𝐶

𝐴𝐵 50
= 9 , resulting equation
13
9𝐴𝐵 = 13(50) , applying cross multiplication
9𝐴𝐵 = 650 , simplifying 13(50)
9𝐴𝐵 650
= , applying DPE
9 9

Therefore, the distance across the river is 72 meters.

What’s More
Solve the following problems.
1. A yardstick casts a shadow of 5 feet. At the same time of the day,
a giraffe casts a shadow of 30 feet. Find the height of the giraffe.

Illustration

Solution

8
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Final Answer

2. A mirror is placed on the ground, such that Marlon can see the top of a
tower on it. Marlon is 1.25 m tall and is standing 0.5 m away from the mirror,
which is 10 m from the base of the tower. Find the height of the tower.

Illustration

Solution

Final Answer

9
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What I Have Learned
Complete the steps in solving the indicated problem by filling up the blanks.

Drawn below is a sketch of a busy intersection. To ease the traffic situation

new roads have to be built. The city engineer suggested constructing a road
passing thru Gingerbread Building. The building is already abandoned and is
scheduled for demolition. If the road is to be parallel to the side of the triangular
History Park that is not along the road, how long will the road be?
Refer to the figure for measurements.

20 35
= , resulting equation
___ 𝑥

___𝑥 = 230(35) , applying cross multiplication

20𝑥 = _____ , simplifying 230(35)

20𝑥 8050
= , applying ___
20 20

𝑥 = _____, therefore, the length of the road is ____ meters.

10
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What I Can Do

Solve the given problem.

PROBLEM
Aga is standing on the top of head of Lea’s shadow. If Aga is 5
feet tall and Lea’s height is 6 feet and the length of their shadows
Simplify the following.
combined is 15 feet, find the length of Aga’s shadow.

ILLUSTRATION

SOLUTION

FINAL ANSWER

Rubric:

Criteria Score

Completeness 4
Correctness 4
Neatness 2
TOTAL 10

11
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Assessment
Choose the letter that corresponds to the correct answer.

1. A 5 m high flagpole casts a shadow 4 m long. What is the height of a tree that
casts a shadow of 20 m at the same time?
A. 16 C. 25
B. 20 D. 30
2. A ladder reaches 6 m up a wall with its foot 2.4 m from the wall. A person
standing under the ladder at a point 80 cm from its foot would be able to
touch the ladder at a height of ___ m from the ground.
A. 1 m C. 2 m
B. 1.5 m D. 3 m
3. ∆PQR is similar to ∆XYZ. What is the perimeter of ∆XYZ?

A. 21
B. 63
C. 105
D. 126

4. If triangle ADE and ABC shown in the figure are similar, what is the value of
x?

A. 4
B. 5
C. 6
D. 8

5. Mr. Smith is having some photos enlarged for his studio. He wants to enlarge
a photo that is 4 inches by 7 inches so the dimensions are 3 times larger than
the original. How many times larger than the original photo will the area of the
new photo be?
A. 3 C. 9
B. 6 D. 30

12
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Additional Activities

Read and understand the problem, then answer the questions below.
Rose is a new employee of certain salon. One hot sunny afternoon, she
was assigned to give away flyers about the new promo of the salon. She
decided to stand behind a 30 ft tall wall that casts a shadow of 8 ft to protect
her newly scrubbed face from the sun. If Rose is 5.5 ft tall, how far can she
stand from the wall and still remain in the shade?
What is asked? What are the given facts?

What is mathematical equation can you generate from the problem?

What is the solution to the problem?

13
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Lesson 2 Problems Involving Right Triangles

What’s In
Supply the missing lengths.

Shorter Leg Longer Leg Hypotenuse

1. 6 in. 10 in.
2. 8 cm. 18 cm.
3. 60 m. 61 m.
4. 28 mm 48 mm
5. 21 ft. 29 ft.

Questions:
1.What mathematical concept did you apply to solve the missing parts of the
given triangle?
2. Can you recite what is Pythagorean Theorem?

What’s New
Problem 1: A carpenter wants to bring inside a house a square piece of wood
having a side that measures 7 feet. The door of that house measures
3 feet by 6 feet.

Questions:
Can the carpenter accomplish his task? If yes, how. If no, explain why.

14
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What is It

For us to help the carpenter on his task, let us apply the concept of right triangles
on it.
Since the wood cannot fit vertically, the carpenter must tilt the piece of wood as
he begins it inside the house.
The diagonal of the door must be greater than the length of the wood for it
to be able to enter inside the house. If not, then the wood cannot be placed
inside the house.

diagonal of the door =

3 =
=
6 =
= 6.7 ft
Since the length of the diagonal of the door
is less than the length of the side of the
wood therefore, the wood cannot be placed
inside the door.

Problem 2: Ruth
develops a blueprint with the help of a triangle. The longest
side of the instrument measures 14 inches and one of the sides measures
12 inches. Determine the length of the other side of the instrument.

Illustration:

Solution:
From Pythagorean Theorem: 𝑎2 + 𝑏 2 = 𝑐 2 → 𝑎2 + 122 = 142
𝑎2 + 144 = 256 → 𝑎2 = 256 − 144
𝑎2 = 112 → 𝑎 = √112

Therefore, the length of the other side of the triangle is 10.6 inches.

15
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
Problem 3: A coloring book has the following dimensions. Find the length of
the diagonal of the book.

Solution:
From Pythagorean Theorem: 𝑎2 + 𝑏 2 = 𝑐 2 → 112 + 82 = 𝑐 2
121 + 64 = 𝑐 2 → 185 = 𝑐 2
√185 = 𝑐

Therefore, the length of the diagonal of the coloring book is 13.6 inches.

Special Right Triangles Problems (30°-60°-90°) and (45°-45°-90°)

Example 1: A bird on top of a tree saw an earthworm on the ground.

The angle formed from the worm to the tree is 60°. If the tree is 10√3 meters high,
how far is the worm from the bird?

Illustration:

Solution:
The triangle formed is a 30°-60°-90° triangle.
Determine first the length opposite 30°.
The length of the side opposite 30° is obtained by dividing the length of the side
opposite the 60° by √3.

10√3
= 10 → length opposite 30°
√3
The length of the hypotenuse (x) is twice the length of the side that is opposite
the side that measures 30°.

Therefore, the hypotenuse (x) is 2(10) or 20 meters.

16
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
Example 2:A 20 feet ladder reaches the top of a wall with angle of 45°.
How tall is the wall?

Illustration:

Solution:
The triangle formed is a 45°-45°-90° triangle.
In a 45°-45°-90° triangle, the length of the hypotenuse is √2 times the length of
any of the legs.
Since, the given is the length of the hypotenuse, we divide by √2 to find the
length of any of the legs.

20 20 √2
= ∙ → , rationalizing the denominator
√2 √2 √2
20√2
= → , simplifying
2
= 10√2 → , simplest form

Therefore, the wall is 10√2 feet high.

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DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What’s More
Solve the following problems.
1. Two cyclists, Elvis and James start at the same time and in the same place.
Elvis travels due east and 15 km per hour and James due north at 20 km per
hour. How far are they from each other after one hour?

Illustration

Solution

Final Answer

2. A ladder 17 feet long leans against a wall. If its foot is 8 feet from the wall,
how high does it reach the wall?

Illustration

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DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Solution

Final Answer

What I Have Learned

Complete the steps in solving the indicated problem by filling up the blanks.

Honesto is trapped at the roof

top of a burning building. To
rescue him, his father Diego
must find a ladder which will be
used to cross the river and go
up directly to the top of the
building. Help Diego to find the
length of the ladder from the
other side of the river to the top
of the building.

Solution:
Theorem

Therefore, the length of the ladder is ___ feet.

19
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 What I Can Do
Solve the given problem.

PROBLEM
A radio tower which is 60 meters in length is braced with a cable
and is tied 11 meters from the base. Find the length of the cable.
Simplify the following.

ILLUSTRATION

SOLUTION

FINAL ANSWER

Rubric:

Criteria Score

Completeness 4
Correctness 4
Neatness 2
TOTAL 10

20
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Assessment
Choose the letter that corresponds to the correct answer.
1. The length of a regular swimming pool is 20 by 10 feet. What is the length
of the diagonal of the pool to the nearest foot?
A. 16 C. 20
B. 18 D. 22
2. The bottom of a ladder is placed 4 feet from the side of a building.
The top of the ladder is 13 feet off the ground. What is the shortest ladder
that will do the job?
A. 10 feet ladder C. 14 feet ladder
B. 12 feet ladder D. 16 feet ladder
3. A boy is flying a kite at the end of a string 20 feet long. If the kite is directly
above a point 5 feet from the end of the string, how high is the kite above
the ground?
A. 18 feet C. 20 feet
B. 19 feet D. 21 feet
4. Margielyn Arda Didal is the Filipino professional street skateboarder.
She skates from the top of a ramp with an angle of inclination of 30°.
The height of the ramp is 4 meters. What is the distance she needed
to skate to reach the bottom of the ramp?
A. 8 m C. 10 m
B. 9 m D. 11 m
5. What is the length of the shadow of a 4 meters statue would cast,
if the angle of elevation of the sun with the ground is 30°?
A. 2 C. 4√3
B. 2√3 D. 8

21
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 Additional Activities

Read and understand the problem, then answer the questions below.
Find the width of a rectangle with a diagonal and length of 20
centimeters and 15 cm, respectively.

What is asked? What are the given facts?

What is mathematical equation can you generate from the problem?

What is the solution to the problem?

22
DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE
 SUMMATIVE TEST

Choose the letter that corresponds to the correct answer.

1. A girl is 5 feet tall. Her shadow is 8 feet long. At the same time of the day,
a tree’s shadow is 32 feet long. What is the height of the tree?
A. 20 feet C. 29 feet
B. 24 feet D. 51 feet
2. A six-foot tall person is standing next to a flagpole. The person is casting a
shadow 1.5 feet in length, while the flagpole is casting a shadow 5 feet length.
How tall is the flagpole?
A. 15 feet C. 25 feet
B. 20 feet D. 30 feet
3. In the figure the two triangles are similar. What is the value of x?
A. 12.4
B. 13.2
C. 14
D. 18.6

4. ∆HIJ is similar to ∆STR. What is the perimeter of ∆STR?

A. 32
B. 37
C. 40
D. 42

5. An architect is building a model of a tennis court for a new client. On the model,
the court is 6 inches wide and 13 inches long. An official tennis court is 36 feet.
What is the length of a tennis court?
A. 60 C. 70
B. 68 D. 78
6. How high would a 10 feet ladder reach a side of a building, if the ladder is set
60°above the ground?
A. 5√2 C. 10√3
B. 10√2 D. 5√3

23
7. In the evening, the shadow of an object is very long due to the low position of
the sun. A 20 m high lamp post makes a 99 m long shadow. What is the distance
from the top of the pole to the top of its shadow?
A. 79 C. 97
B. 89 D. 101
8. How long is the diagonal of a tv monitor with height and width of 27 inches
and 36 inches respectively?
A. 24 inches C. 40 inches
B. 25 inches D. 45 inches
9. A large pine tree was struck by lightning and fell as shown by the diagram
below. Which equation could be used to find the length of the fallen part
of the tree?
A. 82 + 132 = 𝑥
B. √82 + 132 = 𝑥
C. 132 − 82 = 𝑥
D. √132 − 82 = 𝑥

10. What is the length of fallen part of the tree in number 9.

A. 15.3 C.15.4
B. 15.2 D. 15.6

24
Answer Key

25
26
 References

Oronce, Orlando A. and Mendoza, Marilyn O. E-Math Worktext in Mathematics.

Sampaloc, Manila. Rex Book Store. 2016. pp. 283 – 341.

Ulpina, Jisela N. et.al. Math Builders 9. Valenzuela City. JO-ES Publishing House,
Inc. 2014. pp. 231-264.

Alferez, Merle S. and Lambino, Alvin E. MSA Geometry. Quezon City. MSA
Publishing House. 2007. pp. 231-249, 253-271.

Galangue, Gilda C. and De Leon, Nenita N. Worktext in Mathematics III

(Geometry). Manila. IEMI. 2007. pp. 179-197.

Bryant, Merden L. et. al. Mathematics 9 Learners Material. Pasig City. Vibal Group,
Inc. 2014. pp. 347 – 423.
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27
 Development Team of the Module
Writer: Roselyn R. Baracuso, Teacher III (SEHS)

Editors: Editha B. Cajilig, Head Teacher III (MHS)

Olive R. Lomibao, Head Teacher III (SEHS)
Rosalia C. Patricio, Head Teacher I (MHHS)
Lilibeth C. Pulido, Teacher I (MSHS)
Elizalde A. Sarmiento, Teacher III (SRNHS)
Michelle M. Villanueva, Teacher I (MSHS)
Internal Reviewer: Dominador J. Villafria (Education Program Supervisor-Mathematics)
Cover Illustrator & Layout Artist: Joel J. Estudillo (SNNHS)
Layout Editor: Ferdinand B. Villegas (PHS)
Management Team:
Sheryll T. Gayola
Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
OIC, Office of the Schools Division Superintendent

Elisa O. Cerveza
Chief, CID
OIC, Office of the Assistant Schools Division Superintendent

Dominador J. Villafria
Education Program Supervisor-Mathematics

Ivy Coney A. Gamatero

Education Program Supervisor– LRMS

For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Schools Division Office- Marikina City

Email Address: [email protected]

191 Shoe Ave., Sta. Elena, Marikina City, 1800, Philippines

Telefax: (02) 682-2472 / 682-3989

DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE