How to find Y Intercept on a Graph or Table

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The Short Answer to: What is the Y Intercept?

When Finding the Y-Intercept from a Graph and Table you are looking for the point of intersection between the equation and the y-axis. When finding the Y-Intercept from a Graph, all you have to do is find where the line from the equation crosses the y-axis. The point at which the equation crosses the y-axis is the Y-Intercept. When finding the Y-Intercept from a Table, you need to find the y-value from the table when the x-value is equal to zero. If the table already has a x-value of zero in it, then all you need to do is look at the y-value. If the table is missing an x-value of zero, then you must use the rate of change to go backwards or forwards to find the x-value of zero. Always be sure to follow the pattern that is shown in the table.

Common Core Standard: 8.F.B.4

Return To: Home, 8th Grade

A Guide for how to find the Y Intercept of a Line

When Finding the Y-Intercept from a Graph and Table, you are searching for the point of intersection between the equation and the y-axis. When finding the Y-Intercept from a Graph, you should find where the line from the equation crosses the y-axis. The easiest way to think about how to find the y intercept on a graph is to look at the point where the equation crosses the y-axis and that is the Y-Intercept. When finding the Y-Intercept from a Table, you have to discover the y-value from the table when the x-value is equivalent to zero. In other words, to answer how to find y intercept on a table you have to find when x equals 0 in the table and look at what the y-value is. When the table has a x-value of zero in it, you just check the y-value. When the table does not have a x-value of zero, you should use the slope to go in reverse to discover the x-value of zero.

How to find the Y Intercept of a Table Example

When finding Y Intercept from a graph, you find the point where the graph of the equation crosses the y-axis.
When finding Y Intercept from a table, you find the y-value when the x-value is equal to zero.
If you do not know what the x-value is equal to when its zero, you must use the slope to go backward to find it.

How to find Y Intercept of a Function Practice Problems

Video Explanation including the Y Intercept in Math Definition

Watch our free video on how to solve Finding Y Intercept. This video shows how to solve problems that are on our free Finding Y Intercept worksheet that you can get by submitting your email above.

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Video Transcript:

This video is about how to find y-intercept. You can get the finding y-intercept from a table worksheet used in this video for free by clicking on the link in the description below.

The first part of our worksheet is about how to find y-intercept from a graph. In order to find the y-intercept by looking at a graph you have to look at where your line crosses the y axis. If we wanted to we could go ahead and label our graph. We know that this is the y axis and we know that this is the x axis. The y axis is always a vertical axis and the x axis is always the horizontal axis. What you are looking for is you’re looking for the spot where your line crosses the y axis, you’re trying to find exactly where your linear equation will cross the y axis.

If you look at our first example here on our finding y-intercept from a graph worksheet the line crosses the y axis right here. When y equals 1 that means our y-intercept has to be 1 and that’s our solution.

Number 2 is similar to number 1, we have a graph and we have the equation of a line that crosses the graph. I went ahead and labeled this is the y axis and this is the x axis. To find the y intercept you have to find where your line crosses the y axis. In the case of this example our line goes through the y axis right here at the origin. Now when it goes through right at the origin that means the y intercept is 0, and that’s our answer.

The second part is about finding y intercept is about tables. Now when you look at a table the way you find the y-intercept is you’re looking for when X is equal to 0. In some tables it’s as easy as looking at the table and identifying when x is 0 and looking at y. In the case of our first example we can look right at the table we can see that our x value of zero is given to us and we can see that Y is negative 26. When x equals zero that means that the y-intercept for this table will be negative 26 because we already know when x is 0, the Y is negative 26.

However sometimes they do not give you an x equals 0. In order to find the y intercept we have to go backwards to an x equals 0. In the case of this example we have to fill in the 0 in the X column. In order to do that we have to work backwards. If we go this way every time we move up a row we add one to the X. Plus one, plus one, that means when we go backwards we’re going to subtract one from the X. And that will give us X is zero. Now we have to do the same thing for y because we have to find the Y value when X is equal to zero. When you go this way for the Y’s you add five each time. Now when we’re going to go backwards we have to subtract five. When we go this way we add five in order to go backwards, you’re going to subtract five. When you subtract five you do ten minus five and that gives you five. Now we know when X is equal to zero Y is equal to five so we know now that the y intercept is 5.