SAT Math Terms
The SAT Math section tests your knowledge of algebra, problem-solving and data analysis, geometry and trigonometry, and advanced math. This page collects every term and formula on Mathwords that appears on the SAT, organized by topic area. Use it as a study reference or formula review before test day.
Key Concepts
Slope Formula
The slope formula is a way to calculate the steepness of a line when you know two points on it. It works by dividing ...
y-intercept
The y-intercept is the point where a graph crosses the y-axis. Because every point on the y-axis has an x-coordinate ...
Quadratic Formula
The quadratic formula is a formula that gives the exact solutions (roots) of any quadratic equation of the form $ax^2...
Mean
Mean is the most common measure of average, found by adding all values in a data set and dividing by the number of va...
Standard Deviation
Standard deviation is a number that tells you how spread out the values in a data set are from the mean. A small stan...
Probability
Probability is a number between 0 and 1 that measures how likely an event is to occur. A probability of 0 means the e...
Percent / Percentage
A percent is a number expressed as a fraction of 100, using the symbol %. For example, 25% means 25 out of 100, which...
Pythagorean Theorem
The Pythagorean Theorem is an equation that relates the three sides of a right triangle: the sum of the squares of th...
Volume
Volume is the total amount of three-dimensional space enclosed within a solid figure. It is measured in cubic units, ...
Exponent
An exponent is the small number written above and to the right of a base number that tells you how many times to mult...
Absolute Value
Absolute value is the distance of a number from zero on the number line, so it is always zero or positive. The absolu...
Function
A function is a rule that assigns each input exactly one output. If you put a value into a function, you always get b...
Domain
Domain is the set of all input values (typically x-values) for which a function or relation is defined and produces r...
Range
Range is the set of all output values (y-values) that a function or relation can produce. When you evaluate a functio...
Rate of Change
Rate of change is a measure of how much one quantity changes when another quantity changes. It is the same idea as sl...
All SAT Math Terms Terms (921)
- AA Similarity
- AAS Congruence
- Abscissa
- Absolute Value
- Absolute Value Equation
- Absolute Value Function
- Absolute Value Inequality
- Absolute Value Rules
- Acceleration
- Accuracy
- Acute Angle
- Acute Triangle
- Addition Rule
- Additive Inverse of a Matrix
- Adjacent
- Adjacent Angles
- Aleph Null
- Algebra
- Alternate Angles
- Alternate Exterior Angles
- Alternate Interior Angles
- Altitude
- Altitude of a Cone
- Altitude of a Cylinder
- Altitude of a Parallelogram
- Altitude of a Prism
- Altitude of a Pyramid
- Altitude of a Trapezoid
- Altitude of a Triangle
- Amortization
- Amplitude
- Analytic Geometry
- Analytic Methods
- Angle
- Angle Bisector
- Angle of Depression
- Angle of Elevation
- Angle Sum Property of a Triangle
- Annuity
- Annulus
- Anticlockwise
- Antipodal Points
- Apex
- Apothem
- ARC
- Arc of a Circle
- arccos
- arccosec
- arccot
- arcsec
- arcsin
- arctan
- Area of a Circle
- Area of a Convex Polygon
- Area of a Kite
- Area of a Parallelogram
- Area of a Rectangle
- Area of a Regular Polygon
- Area of a Rhombus
- Area of a Sector of a Circle
- Area of a Segment of a Circle
- Area of a Trapezoid
- Area of a Triangle
- Area of an Equilateral Triangle
- Argand Plane
- Argument of a Function
- Arithmetic
- Arithmetic Mean
- Arithmetic Progression
- Arithmetic Series
- Arm of a Right Triangle
- Arm of an Angle
- ASA Congruence
- Asymptote
- Augmented Matrix
- Average
- Axes
- Axis of a Cylinder
- Axis of Reflection
- Axis of Rotation
- Axis of Symmetry
- Axis of Symmetry of a Parabola
- Back Substitution
- Bar Graph
- Base (Geometry)
- Base of a Trapezoid
- Base of a Triangle
- Base of an Exponential Expression
- Base of an Isosceles Triangle
- Bayes' Theorem
- Bearing
- Bernoulli Trials
- Between
- Biconditional
- Big O Notation
- Binary / Base 2
- Binomial
- Binomial Coefficients
- Binomial Coefficients in Pascal's Triangle
- Binomial Probability Formula
- Binomial Theorem
- Bisect
- Bisector
- Bivariate Data
- Boolean Logic
- Box
- Box and Whisker Plot
- Boxplot
- Braces
- Brackets
- Cardinal Numbers
- Cartesian Coordinates
- Cartesian Form
- Cartesian Plane
- Categorical Data
- Cavalieri’s Principle
- Ceiling Function
- Center of Rotation
- Centers of a Triangle
- Central Angle
- Centroid
- Centroid Formula
- Ceva’s Theorem
- Cevian
- Change of Base Formula
- Check a Solution
- Chi-Square Test
- Chord
- Circle
- Circle Graph (Pie Chart)
- Circle Trig Definitions
- Circular Cone
- Circular Cylinder
- Circular Functions
- Circumcenter
- Circumcircle
- Circumference
- Circumscribable
- Circumscribed
- Clockwise
- Closed Interval
- Coefficient
- Coefficient Matrix
- Coefficient of Determination (R²)
- Cofunction Identities
- Coincident
- Collinear
- Column of a Matrix
- Combination
- Combination Formula
- Combinatorics
- Common Logarithm
- Common Ratio
- Compatible Matrices
- Complement of an Angle
- Complement of an Event
- Complementary Angles
- Completing the Square
- Complex Conjugate
- Complex Fraction
- Complex Number Formulas
- Complex Numbers
- Composite
- Composite Number
- Composition
- Compound Inequality
- Compound Interest
- Compounded Continuously
- Compression
- Compression of a Geometric Figure
- Compression of a Graph
- Compute
- Concave
- Concentric
- Concurrent
- Conditional Equation
- Conditional Inequality
- Conditional Probability
- Cone
- Cone Angle
- Confidence Interval
- Congruence Tests for Triangles
- Congruent
- Conic Sections
- Conjugate Pair Theorem
- Conjugates
- Consecutive Interior Angles
- Consistent System of Equations
- Constant
- Constant Function
- Constant of Proportionality
- Constant Polynomial
- Continued Sum
- Continuity at a Point
- Contrapositive
- Converge
- Convergent Sequence
- Convergent Series
- Convex
- Coordinate Grid
- Coordinates
- Coplanar
- Correlation
- Correlation Coefficient
- Correlation vs. Causation
- Corresponding
- cos
- cosec
- Cost Function
- cot
- Coterminal
- Counting Numbers
- CPCFC
- CPCTC
- Cramer’s Rule
- Cross Multiplication
- Cross Section
- Cube
- Cube Root
- Cubic Polynomial
- Cumulative Frequency
- Cylinder
- Decagon
- Decay Factor
- Deciles
- Decimal
- Decreasing Function
- Degenerate
- Degree (angle measure)
- Degree of a Polynomial
- Degree of a Term
- Delta (Δ δ)
- Denominator
- Dependent Events
- Dependent Variable
- Descartes' Rule of Signs
- Determinant
- Diagonal Matrix
- Diagonal of a Polygon
- Diameter
- Diametrically Opposed
- Difference
- Difference Identities
- Difference of Cubes
- Difference of Squares
- Difference Quotient
- Digit
- Dihedral Angle
- Dilation
- Dilation of a Geometric Figure
- Dilation of a Graph
- Dimensional Analysis
- Dimensions
- Dimensions of a Matrix
- Direct Proportion
- Directrix of a Parabola
- Discriminant of a Quadratic
- Disjoint Events
- Disjoint Sets
- Disk
- Distance Formula
- Distinct
- Distribute
- Distributing Rules
- Distributive Property
- Diverge
- Divergent Sequence
- Divergent Series
- Divisibility Rules
- Dodecagon
- Dodecahedron
- Domain
- Domain of Definition
- Dot Plot
- Double Angle Identities
- Double Cone
- Double Root
- Doubling Time
- e
- Edge of a Polyhedron
- Eigenvalue
- Eigenvector
- Element of a Matrix
- Ellipse
- Elliptic Geometry
- Empirical Rule (68-95-99.7 Rule)
- End Behavior
- Epsilon-Delta Definition
- Equation
- Equation of a Line
- Equation vs. Expression
- Equiangular Triangle
- Equidistant
- Equilateral Triangle
- Equivalent Systems of Equations
- Euclidean Distance
- Euclidean Geometry
- Euler Line
- Euler's Formula (Polyhedra)
- Evaluate
- Even Function
- Even Number
- Event
- Exact Values of Trig Functions
- Existential Quantifier
- Experiment
- Experimental Probability
- Explicit Formula of a Sequence
- Exponent
- Exponent Rules
- Exponential Decay
- Exponential Equation
- Exponential Function
- Exponential Growth
- Exponential Regression
- Exponentiation
- Expression
- Exterior Angle of a Polygon
- Exterior Angle Theorem
- Extraneous Solution
- Extrapolation
- Extrema
- Extreme Values of a Polynomial
- Extremum
- Face of a Polyhedron
- Factor of a Polynomial
- Factor of an Integer
- Factor Theorem
- Factor Tree
- Factored Form
- Factorial
- Factoring Rules
- Falling Bodies
- Fibonacci Sequence
- First Quartile
- Five Number Summary
- Fixed
- Flip
- Floor Function
- Focal Radius
- Foci of a Hyperbola
- Foci of an Ellipse
- Focus
- Focus of a Parabola
- FOIL Method
- Formula
- Fractal
- Fraction
- Fraction Rules
- Fractional Equation
- Fractional Exponents
- Fractional Expression
- Frequency of a Periodic Function
- Frequency of Periodic Motion
- Frequency Table
- Frustum of a Cone or Pyramid
- Function
- Function Notation
- Function Operations
- Fundamental Counting Principle
- Fundamental Theorem of Algebra
- Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic
- Future Value
- Gambling Odds
- Gaussian Elimination
- GCF
- General Form for the Equation of a Line
- Geometric Figure
- Geometric Mean
- Geometric Progression
- Geometric Series
- Geometric Solid
- Geometry
- Glide
- Glide Reflection
- Golden Mean
- Golden Rectangle
- Golden Spiral
- Graph of an Equation or Inequality
- Graph Theory
- Graphic Methods
- Gravity
- Great Circle
- Growth Factor
- Half Angle Identities
- Half-Closed Interval
- Half-Life
- Harmonic Mean
- Harmonic Progression
- Harmonic Series
- Heptagon
- Hero’s Formula
- Hexadecimal
- Hexagon
- Hexahedron
- High Quartile
- Histogram
- HL Congruence
- HL Similarity
- Horizontal
- Horizontal Asymptote
- Horizontal Compression
- Horizontal Dilation
- Horizontal Hyperbola
- Horizontal Line Equation
- Horizontal Line Test
- Horizontal Parabola
- Horizontal Reflection
- Horizontal Shift
- Hyperbolic Geometry
- Hypotenuse
- i
- Icosahedron
- Identity (Equation)
- Identity Matrix
- Identity of an Operation
- Identity Property of Addition
- Identity Property of Multiplication
- Image of a Transformation
- Imaginary Numbers
- Imaginary Part
- Impossible Event
- Improper Fraction
- Improper Rational Expression
- Incenter
- Incircle
- Inconsistent System of Equations
- Increasing Function
- Independent Events
- Independent Variable
- Inequality
- Inequality Rules
- Infinite Geometric Series
- Infinite Series
- Initial Side of an Angle
- Inradius
- Inscribed Angle in a Circle
- Integers
- Interest
- Interior
- Interior Angle
- Interpolation
- Interquartile Range
- Interval
- Interval Notation
- Invariant
- Inverse
- Inverse Function
- Inverse of a Matrix
- Inverse Operations
- Inverse Proportion
- Inverse Trig
- Inverse Trig Functions
- Invertible Matrix
- Irrational Numbers
- Isometry
- Isosceles Trapezoid
- Isosceles Triangle
- Joint Variation
- Kite
- Lateral Area
- Lateral Surface/Face
- Latus Rectum
- Law of Cosines
- Law of Large Numbers
- Law of Sines
- LCM
- Leading Coefficient
- Leading Coefficient Test
- Leading Term
- Least Common Denominator
- Least-Squares Fit
- Least-Squares Regression Equation
- Leg of a Trapezoid
- Leg of an Isosceles Triangle
- Like Terms
- Limit Definition of Derivative
- Limit Laws
- Line
- Line of Best Fit
- Line Segment
- Linear
- Linear Combination
- Linear Equation
- Linear Factorization
- Linear Inequality
- Linear Pair of Angles
- Linear Polynomial
- Linear Programming
- Linear Regression
- Linear System of Equations
- Literal Equation
- Locus
- Logarithm
- Logarithm Rules
- Logarithmic Equation
- Logical Equivalence
- Logistic Growth
- Long Division of Polynomials
- Magnitude
- Main Diagonal of a Matrix
- Major Arc
- Major Axis of a Hyperbola
- Major Axis of an Ellipse
- Major Diameter of an Ellipse
- Margin of Error
- Mathematical Model
- Mathematical Model
- Matrix
- Matrix Addition
- Matrix Multiplication
- Matrix Subtraction
- Matrix Transformation
- Mean
- Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD)
- Mean of a Random Variable
- Measure of an Angle
- Measurement
- Median of a Set of Numbers
- Median of a Trapezoid
- Median of a Triangle
- Member of an Equation
- Mensuration
- Midpoint
- Midpoint Formula
- Midsegment
- Minor Arc
- Minor Axis of a Hyperbola
- Minor Axis of an Ellipse
- Minor Diameter of an Ellipse
- Minute
- Mixed Number
- Möbius Strip
- Mode
- Monomial
- Multiplication Rule
- Multiplicative Inverse of a Number
- Multiplicity
- Multivariable
- n-gon
- Natural Logarithm
- Negation
- Negative Direction
- Negative Exponents
- Negative Number
- Negative Reciprocal
- Negatively Associated Data
- Net (Geometry)
- No Slope
- Non-Adjacent
- Non-Euclidean Geometry
- Nonagon
- Noncollinear
- Noninvertible Matrix
- Nonnegative
- Nonnegative Integers
- Nonreal numbers
- Nontrivial
- Nonzero
- Normal Distribution
- nth Root
- nth Root Rules
- Null Hypothesis
- Number Line
- Numerator
- Oblique
- Oblique Asymptote
- Oblique Cone
- Oblique Cylinder
- Oblique Prism
- Oblique Pyramid
- Obtuse Angle
- Obtuse Triangle
- Octagon
- Octahedron
- Octants
- Odd Function
- Odd Number
- Odd/Even Identities
- Odds
- Odds Against
- Odds in Favor
- One Dimension
- One-to-One Function
- Open Interval
- Order of Operations (PEMDAS)
- Ordinal Numbers
- Ordinate
- Origin
- Orthocenter
- Outcome
- Outlier
- Outlier Rule (1.5 x IQR)
- Oval
- Overdetermined System of Equations
- p-value
- Paired Data
- Parallel Lines
- Parallel Planes
- Parallel Postulate
- Parallel Slopes
- Parallelepiped
- Parallelogram
- Parameter (Statistics)
- Parent Functions
- Parentheses
- Partial Fractions
- Partition of a Set
- Pentagon
- Per Annum
- Percent / Percentage
- Percent Change
- Percent Error
- Percentile
- Perfect Number
- Perfect Square
- Perfect Square Trinomial
- Perimeter
- Period of a Periodic Function
- Period of Periodic Motion
- Periodic Function
- Periodic Motion
- Periodicity Identities
- Permutation
- Permutation Formula
- Perpendicular
- Perpendicular Bisector
- Perpendicular Slopes
- Phase Shift
- Pi (Π π)
- Piecewise Function
- Piecewise Linear Function
- Place Value
- Plane
- Plane Figure
- Plane Geometry
- Platonic Solids
- Point
- Point of Symmetry
- Point-Slope Equation of a Line
- Polygon
- Polygon Interior
- Polyhedron
- Polynomial
- Polynomial Facts
- Polynomial Function
- Polynomial Inequality
- Population
- Positive Direction
- Positive Number
- Positive Series
- Positively Associated Data
- Power
- Pre-Image of a Transformation
- Precision
- Present Value
- Prime Factorization
- Prime Number
- Principal
- Prism
- Probability
- Probability Distribution
- Product
- Product to Sum Identities
- Proper Fraction
- Proper Rational Expression
- Proportion
- Proportional
- Pyramid
- Pythagorean Identities
- Pythagorean Theorem
- Pythagorean Triple
- Quadrangle
- Quadrantal Angle
- Quadrants
- Quadratic
- Quadratic Equation
- Quadratic Formula
- Quadratic Function
- Quadratic Polynomial
- Quadratic Regression
- Quadruple
- Quantitative Data
- Quartic Polynomial
- Quartiles
- Quintic Polynomial
- Quintiles
- Quintuple
- Quotient
- Radian
- Radical
- Radical Equation
- Radicand
- Radius of a Circle or Sphere
- Random Sample
- Random Variable
- Range
- Rate of Change
- Ratio
- Ratio Identities
- Rational Function
- Rational Numbers
- Rational Root Theorem
- Rationalizing the Denominator
- Ray
- Real Numbers
- Real Part
- Reciprocal Identities
- Rectangle
- Recursion
- Recursive Formula of a Sequence
- Reduce a Fraction
- Reduced Row-Echelon Form of a Matrix
- Reference Angle
- Regression
- Regression Equation
- Regression Line
- Regular Polygon
- Regular Prism
- Regular Pyramid
- Regular Right Prism
- Regular Right Pyramid
- Regular Tetrahedron
- Relation
- Relative Frequency
- Relatively Prime
- Remainder
- Remainder Theorem
- Residual
- Residual Plot
- Restricted Domain
- Restricted Function
- Rhombus
- Right Angle
- Right Circular Cone
- Right Circular Cylinder
- Right Cone
- Right Cylinder
- Right Prism
- Right Pyramid
- Right Square Prism
- Right Triangle
- Rigid Transformation
- RMS
- Root of a Number
- Root of an Equation
- Rotation
- Rounding a Number
- Row of a Matrix
- Row Operations
- Row Reduction
- RPM
- Sample Space
- Sampling
- Sampling Bias
- SAS Congruence
- SAS Similarity
- Satisfy
- Scalar Multiplication of a Matrix
- Scale Factor
- Scalene Triangle
- Scatterplot
- Scientific Notation
- sec
- Secant Line
- Second
- Sector of a Circle
- Segment of a Circle
- Self-Similarity
- Semicircle
- Semiperimeter
- Sequence
- Series
- Set-Builder Notation
- Side of a Polygon
- Sigmoid Function
- Significance Level (Alpha)
- Significant Digits
- Similar
- Similarity Tests for Triangles
- Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
- Simple Interest
- Simplify
- Simultaneous Equations
- sin
- Sinusoid
- Skew Lines
- Slant Height
- Slope Formula
- Slope of a Line
- Slope-Intercept Equation of a Line
- SOHCAHTOA
- Solid Geometry
- Solution
- Solve
- Solve Analytically
- Solve Graphically
- Special Angles
- Speed
- Sphere
- Spherical Trigonometry
- Square
- Square Matrix
- Square Root
- Square Root Rules
- Square System of Equations
- Squeeze Theorem
- SSA
- SSS Congruence
- SSS Similarity
- Standard Deviation
- Standard Form of a Quadratic
- Standard Position
- Statistic
- Stem-and-Leaf Plot
- Step Function
- Stewart's Theorem
- Straight Angle
- Strict Inequality
- Sum
- Sum of Cubes
- Sum to Product Identities
- Supplement
- Supplementary Angles
- Surd
- Sure Event
- Surface
- Surface Area
- Symmetric
- Symmetric about the Origin
- Symmetric about the x-axis
- Symmetric about the y-axis
- Synthetic Division
- Synthetic Substitution
- System of Inequalities
- Takeout Angle
- tan
- Tangent Line
- Term
- Terminal Side of an Angle
- Tessellate
- Theoretical Probability
- Three Dimensional Coordinates
- Three Dimensions
- Time Series
- Torus
- Transformations
- Translation (Geometry)
- Transpose of a Matrix
- Transversal
- Trapezium
- Trapezoid
- Tree Diagram
- Triangle
- Triangle Inequality
- Triangle Inequality with Absolute Value
- Triangulation
- Trig
- Trig Identities
- Trinomial
- Triple
- Triple Root
- Trivial
- Truncated Cone or Pyramid
- Truncated Cylinder or Prism
- Truncating a Number
- Truth Table
- Twin Primes
- Two Dimensions
- Two Intercept Form for the Equation of a Line
- Two-Way Table
- Type I Error
- Type II Error
- Undecagon
- Underdetermined System of Equations
- Uniform
- Unit Circle
- Unit Circle Trig Definitions
- Unit Rate
- Univariate Data
- Universal Quantifier
- Variable
- Variance
- Varignon Parallelogram of a Quadrilateral
- Vector Space
- Velocity
- Vertex
- Vertex Form
- Vertex of a Hyperbola
- Vertex of a Parabola
- Vertex of an Ellipse
- Vertical
- Vertical Angles
- Vertical Asymptote
- Vertical Compression
- Vertical Dilation
- Vertical Line Equation
- Vertical Line Test
- Vertical Reflection
- Vertical Shift
- Vinculum
- Volume
- Wavelength
- Weighted Average
- Weighted Mean
- x-axis
- x-intercept
- x-y Plane
- x-z Plane
- y-axis
- y-intercept
- y-z Plane
- z-intercept
- Z-Score
- Zero
- Zero Dimensions
- Zero Matrix
- Zero of a Function
- Zero Product Property
- Zero Property of Multiplication
- Zero Slope
Frequently Asked Questions
What math is on the SAT?
The SAT Math section covers four areas: (1) Algebra — linear equations, systems, inequalities; (2) Advanced Math — quadratics, polynomials, exponential functions; (3) Problem-Solving and Data Analysis — ratios, percentages, probability, statistics; (4) Geometry and Trigonometry — area, volume, angles, trig ratios.
Is there a formula sheet on the SAT?
The SAT provides a small reference sheet with a few geometry formulas (area of a circle, volume of cylinder/sphere/cone, special right triangle ratios, etc.). However, you are expected to know most algebra, statistics, and trigonometry formulas from memory.
What is a good SAT Math score?
SAT Math is scored from 200 to 800. A score of 530 is roughly average (50th percentile). A score of 610+ puts you in the top 25%. A score of 700+ puts you in the top 5%.
Can I use a calculator on the SAT?
Yes. The entire SAT Math section allows a calculator (graphing or scientific). However, many questions are designed to be solved more efficiently without one.