A perpendicular line is a straight line through a point. It makes an angle of 90 degrees with a particular point through which the line passes. Coordinates and line equation is the prerequisite to finding out the perpendicular line.

Consider the equation of the line is ax + by + c = 0 and coordinates are (x₁, y₁), the slope should be − a/b. If one line is perpendicular to this line, the product of slopes should be -1. Let m₁ and m₂ be the slopes of two lines, and if they are perpendicular to each other, then their product will be -1.

\[\large Perpendicular\;Lines;\;m_{1}\times m_{2}=-1\]

\[\large Slope\;m=\frac{-a}{b}\]

\[\large Perpendicular\;Line \; equation:\; (y-y_{1})=m(x-x_{1})\]

Solved Example

Question: Check whether 2x + 3y + 5 = 0 and 3x – 2y + 1 = 0 are perpendicular or not.

Solution:

The given equations of lines are:
2x + 3y + 5 = 0 and 3x – 2y + 1 = 0

To check whether they are perpendicular to each other, find out the slopes of both lines. If the product of their slopes is -1, these lines are perpendicular to each other.

Slope formula is; m =

Slope for first line,