Which description best defines slope?

Which description best defines slope?

• A. Vertical change/ Horizontal Change
• B. Rise/Run
• C. Difference between highest and lowest values
• D. The mean of the data set

Answer: (B)

Slope measures how steep a line is by describing how much y changes for a given change in x. The standard way to express this rate of change is rise over run—the vertical change (rise) divided by the horizontal change (run). In symbols, slope = Δy/Δx. For example, if x increases by 2 (run = 2) and y increases by 3 (rise = 3), the slope is 3/2, meaning y goes up 1.5 for each 1 unit increase in x. This phrasing captures the idea of incline or steepness most clearly. The phrase vertical change over horizontal change communicates the same idea but is less commonly used. The other descriptions refer to different concepts (range and mean) and do not describe how y changes with x.

Slope measures how steep a line is by describing how much y changes for a given change in x. The standard way to express this rate of change is rise over run—the vertical change (rise) divided by the horizontal change (run). In symbols, slope = Δy/Δx. For example, if x increases by 2 (run = 2) and y increases by 3 (rise = 3), the slope is 3/2, meaning y goes up 1.5 for each 1 unit increase in x. This phrasing captures the idea of incline or steepness most clearly. The phrase vertical change over horizontal change communicates the same idea but is less commonly used. The other descriptions refer to different concepts (range and mean) and do not describe how y changes with x.