Inverses

Direct & Inverse Relationships

Direct and inverse relationships were presented in 7th and 8th grade math courses, but a brief summary is provided here. Functions that have a direct relationship will have the form y = kx. Functions that have an inverse relationship will have the form Direct1 . These two functions are both forms of power functions and are inverses of each other.

To see where this relationship comes from, find the inverse of y = kx.

Step 1. Switch the x and the y.

x = ky

Step 2. Solve for y.

Direct_2

The inverse of y = kx is Direct_3 .