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Graphing on the Coordinate Plane
The Cartesian coordinate system provides an easy way to locate
points on a plane, which is a two-dimensional surface. It consists
of a coordinate grid separated by a horizontal number line called
the x-axis and a vertical number line called the y-axis.
The intersection of these number lines is called the origin. The
coordinates of the origin are (0,0).
The two axes divide the grid into four quadrants, numbered I to
IV counterclockwise.
Every point on the grid can be identified with two numbers called
coordinates:
The first number is the x-coordinate (or abscissa).
The second number is the y-coordinate (or ordinate).
An ordered pair is made up of an x-coordinate and a y-coordinate. The
x-coordinate tells you how far left or right of the origin the point is. The
y-coordinate tells you how far up or down from the origin the point is.
Locating Points on the Coordinate Plane
The coordinate for this point is (2,-4). The x-coordinate is 2. That means
we move 2 to the positive side of the origin. The y-coordinate is 4. That
means we move 4 down from the x-axis.