The slope-intercept form of a linear equation is expressed as y = mx + b, where:
- y is the dependent variable (output).
- x is the independent variable (input).
- m represents the slope of the line, indicating how steep the line is.
- b is the y-intercept, which is the value of y when x is 0.
To write an equation in this form, you need to identify the values of the slope and y-intercept.
For example, if we want to write the equation of a line with a slope of 2 and a y-intercept of 3, we would substitute these values into the slope-intercept formula:
y = 2x + 3
This equation tells us that for every unit increase in x, y increases by 2, starting from 3 when x is 0. Using this format makes it easy to graph the equation and understand the relationship between x and y.