Definition of Terms

Trigonometry came from three Greek words, tri which means three, gono which means
side, and metron which refers to measure. In other words, trigonometry is basically the
science of triangle measurement. It deals with the measurement of triangles and the
relationship of the sides and angles of a triangle.
An angle is a geometric figure formed by two rays having a common endpoint. The
vertex of an angle is the common endpoint and its sides are the rays forming the angle.
Similarly, it is the figure formed by rotation of a ray about its vertex.
The sense of an angle is considered positive (+) when rotation of a ray is
counterclockwise and negative (-) when the rotation is clockwise.
Angle Measure
The size of an angle is given by the amount of rotation of the ray. It may be expressed in
either in degree or radian measure.
Degree Measure. This indicated by a small circle placed in the upper right corner of the
number representing measure of the angle. The size of the angle produced by one
complete revolution is equal to 360o. Thus, one degree is equal to 1/360o of a complete
revolution.
Radian Measure. One radian is an angle, which is placed with its vertex at the center of
the circle, subtends an arc equal to the radius of the circle. Thus, the radian measure of a
central angle of a circle,

is the ratio of the intercepted arc, s to the radius r .

s=r , or