Leo+DadMade for Leo
Angles at a Point
Rung 2 of 4 · The method

Finding a Missing Angle

Every missing-angle problem is the same three moves: name the fact, write it as a sum, then take the known angles off. Let's drill it until it's automatic.


PractiseHit "new question", work out x, then check yourself. Stuck? Reveal the steps.
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There's no new maths here — just the three facts from rung 1, used in reverse. Instead of checking the total, you already know the total and you're hunting the one piece that's missing.

The Three Moves

One — name the fact. Look at the picture. Angles sharing a straight edge? That's 180°. Angles fanning out all the way round a point? That's 360°. An X-cross where x sits opposite a known angle? They're equal.

Two — write the equation. Put the known angles and x into a sum that equals the right total. For a straight line: known + x = 180.

Three — solve for x. Subtract the knowns from the total. x = 180 − known. Done.

A Worked One

Two angles sit on a straight line. One is 65°, the other is x. The fact is "straight line → 180°", so 65 + x = 180, which gives x = 180 − 65 = 115°. For an "around a point" question with angles of 120° and 95°: 120 + 95 + x = 360, so x = 360 − 215 = 145°.

The drill: name the fact → write the sum → subtract to leave x. Vertically opposite is the freebie — x just equals the angle across from it, no subtraction needed.

Always Write the Reason

In an exam you don't just write the number — you write the fact you used, like "angles on a straight line sum to 180°". That one line is worth marks, and it forces you to check you picked the right rule before you commit. Get into the habit now.

Us, Thinking Out Loud

Could you teach me the three moves without peeking at the steps?

Why is "vertically opposite" the easiest of the three to use?