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The Rectangular Coordinate System
A
B
C
D
E
F
. . . .

The Rectangular Coordinate Plane (2)

In the previous example, points A, B, and C are points on the x-axis. Observe that any point on the x-axis has a y-coordinate equal to 0.

On the other hand, points D, E, and G are points on the y-axis. You can say that any point on the y-axis has an x-coordinate equal to 0.

Lastly, point F is at the origin. It lies on the intersection of both axes and has 0 as its x- and y-coordinates.

In general, the following statements are true:
  • Any point on the x-axis has coordinates of the form (a,0), where a is a real number.
  • Any point on the y-axis has coordinates of the form (0,b), where b is a real number.
  • The origin has coordinates (0,0).