Pause and Reflect

How can you distinguish between the x-intercept and the y-intercept from a graph?

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Which intercept corresponds with which axis? Interactive popup. Assistance may be required.

Check Your Answer

The x-intercept is the point where the graph crosses the x-axis (horizontal axis) and the y-intercept is the point where the graph crosses the y-axis (vertical axis).

Practice

Interpret both the x- and y-intercepts in the relationships shown in the graphs below.

1. The graph shown below represents the number of tickets that a theater must sell in order to reach $350 in revenue from ticket sales.
   

   

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   Identify the variable represented by the values on each axis by studying the axis labels. Interactive popup. Assistance may be required.

   Check Your Answer

   The x-intercept, (70, 0), shows that if the theater sells only adult tickets, they must sell 70 adult tickets in order to generate $350 in revenue.
   The y-intercept, (0, 140), shows that if the theater sells only children’s tickets, they must sell 140 children’s tickets in order to generate $350 in revenue.


2. A hiker is hiking down a canyon toward the canyon floor. Her height above the canyon floor as a function of time is shown in the graph below.

   

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   Need a hint?

   Identify the variable represented by the values on each axis by studying the axis labels. Interactive popup. Assistance may be required.

   Check Your Answer

   The x-intercept, (18, 0), shows that in 18 minutes, the height of the hiker above the canyon floor will be zero; in other words, the hiker will reach the canyon floor in 18 minutes.
   The y-intercept, (0, 360), shows that at time = 0 minutes, the hiker is 360 feet above the canyon floor.