Introduction

A circle is a simple closed shape in Euclidean geometry. It is the set of all points in
a plane that are at a given distance from a given point, the centre; equivalently it
is the curve traced out by a point that moves so that its distance from a given
point is constant. The distance between any of the points and the centre is called
the radius. According to Euclid, a circle is a plane figure bounded by one line, and
such that all right lines drawn from a certain point within it to the bounding line,
are equal. The bounding line is called its circumference and the point, its centre.

Terms Associated with a Circle

Arc: In Euclidean geometry, an arc (symbol: ) is a closed segment of a

differentiable curve. A common example in the plane (a two-dimensional
manifold), is a segment of a circle called a circular arc.

Major and Minor Arcs: Two points lying on a circle actually define two arcs. The
shortest is called the 'minor arc' the longer one is called the 'major arc'. When the
major and minor arcs are the same length, they divide the circle into two
semicircular arcs. Under these circumstances neither arc is considered to be the
major or minor arc.

Chord: A chord of a circle is a straight line segment whose endpoints both lie on
the circle. A chord that passes through a circle's center point is the circle's
diameter. Every diameter is a chord, but not every chord is a diameter.

Secant: an extended chord, a coplanar straight line cutting the circle at two points.

Tangent: a coplanar straight line that touches the circle at a single point. In
Euclidean plane geometry, a tangent line to a circle is a line that touches the circle
at exactly one point, never entering the circle's interior. Roughly speaking, it is a
line through a pair of infinitely close points on the circle. Tangent lines to circles
form the subject of several theorems, and play an important role in many
geometrical constructions and proofs. Since the tangent line to a circle at a point P
is perpendicular to the radius to that point, theorems involving tangent lines often
involve radial lines and orthogonal circles.
Semicircle: In mathematics (and more specifically geometry), a semicircle is a one-
dimensional locus of points that forms half of a circle. The full arc of a semicircle
always measures 180. It has only one line of symmetry (reflection symmetry). In
non-technical usage, the term "semicircle" is sometimes used to refer to a half-
disk.

Segment of a circle: In geometry, a circular segment (symbol: ) is a region of a

circle which is "cut off" from the rest of the circle by a secant or a chord. More
formally, a circular segment is a region of two-dimensional space that is bounded
by an arc (of less than 180) of a circle and by the chord connecting the endpoints
of the arc.

Minor and Major Segment: A chord of a circle divides the circle into two regions,
which are called the segments of the circle. The minor segment is the region
bounded by the chord and the minor arc intercepted by the chord. The major
segment is the region bounded by the chord and the major arc intercepted by the
chord.

Sector of the circle: A circular sector or circle sector (symbol: ), is the portion of
a disk enclosed by two radii and an arc, where the smaller area is known as the
minor sector and the larger being the major sector. A sector with the central angle
of 180 is called a half-disk and is bounded by a diameter and a semicircle. Sectors
with other central angles are sometimes given special names, these include
quadrants (90), sextants (60) and octants (45), which come from the sector
being one 4th or 6th or 8th part of a full circle, respectively.

Minor and Major Sector: A part of the interior of a circle enclosed by an arc and
two radii is called a sector of a given circle. A larger part occupied by two radii is
called the major sector. A major sector has central angle which is more than 180.
A smaller part occupied by two radii is called the minor sector. A minor sector has
central angle which is less than 180.

Quadrant: A quadrant is one-fourth of a circle. When a circle is evenly divided

into four sections by two perpendicular lines, each of the four areas is a quadrant.
Concentric Circles: Concentric circles are circles with a common center. The region
between two concentric circles of different radii is called an annulus.

Properties of a Circle

Angles in the same segment of a circle are equal.

Proof:

1. Draw a circle of any radius (say, 3 cm) with centre at O on it.

2. Take any two points A and B on the circle to obtain arc AB.
3. Join AB to divide the circle into major and minor segments.
4. Take any two points P and Q in the same segment (say, major segment).
5. Join AP, BP, AQ and BQ.
6. Mark APB and AQB, the two angles formed in the major segment of
the circle.
7. Place a tracing paper over the circle and draw a duplicate of APB on it.
8. Cut out the triangle drawn on the tracing paper and mark it as A' P' B'.
9. Place the cut-out of A' P' B' on AQB such that P' coincides with Q and A'
lies on Q A.

Observation :

A' P' B' completely covers AQB which implies

AQB = A'P'B' = APB

We have verified that the angles in the same segment of a circle are equal.
The angle subtended by an arc of a circle at the centre is double the angle
subtended by it at any point on the remaining part of the circle.

Proof:

1. Draw a circle of any radius (say, 3 cm) with centre at O on it.

2. Take any two points A and B on the circle to obtain arc AB.
3. Join OA and OB.
4. Mark AOB subtended by arc AB at the center O of the circle.
5. Take a point P on the remaining part of the circle.
6. Join AP and BP.
7. Mark APB subtended by arc AB at point P on the remaining part of the
circle.
8. Place a tracing paper over the circle and draw a duplicate of the sector OAB
on it.
9. Cut out the sector drawn on the tracing paper and mark it as sector O'A' B' .
10.Fold the cut-out at the middle such that O'A' coincides with O'B'.
11.Place the folded tracing paper on APB such that O' coincides with P and A'
lies on AP.
12.The folded tracing paper completely covers APB, which implies
AOB = APB
AOB = 2APB

We have verified that the angle subtended by an arc of a circle at the centre is
double the angle subtended by it at any point on the remaining part of the circle.

The opposite angles of a cyclic quadrilateral are supplementary.

A cyclic quadrilateral is a quadrilateral whose vertices all lie on a circle. An

example is pictured below:
Construct a radius to each of the four vertices of the quadrilateral as pictured
below:

Since the radii of the circle are all congruent, this partitions the quadrilateral into
four isosceles triangles. The base angles of an isosceles triangle have the same
measure. These pairs of congruent angles are labeled in the picture below:

The sum of the angles around the center of the circle is 360 degrees. The sum of
the angles in each of the triangles is 180 degrees. So if we add up the labeled
angle measures and the angles forming the circle around the center, we get:

2a+2b+2c+2d+360=4180.

If we subtract 360 from both sides, we get

2a+2b+2c+2d=360

or

a+b+c+d=180.
Note that (a+b) and (c+d) are the measures of opposite angles, and we can simply
group the measures in the last equation like this:

(a+b)+(c+d)=180.

Likewise, (a+d) and (b+c) are the measures of opposite angles, and we can just
rearrange the equation to see that

(a+d)+(b+c)=180.

So, indeed, we see that the opposite angles in a cyclic quadrilateral are
supplementary.

The exterior angle of a cyclic quadrilateral is equal to the interior opposite angle.

1. Draw a circle of any radius on a coloured paper and cut it.

2. Paste the cutout on a rectangular sheet of paper.[Fig 9(a)].

3. By paper folding get chords AB, BC, CD and DA.

4. Draw AB, BC, CD and DA. Cyclic quadrilateral ABCD is obtained [Fig 9(b)].

5. Make a replica of cyclic quadrilateral ABCD using carbon paper / tracing paper.

[Fig 9(c)]

Observations
1. When A and angle C are placed adjacent to each other they form a linear
pair.

This shows A + C = 1800

2. D completely covers CBE. This shows that exterior angle of a cyclic

quadrilateral ABCD is equal to the interior opposite angle.

Learning outcome

1. opposite angles of a cyclic quadrilateral are supplementary.

2. exterior angle to a cyclic quadrilateral is equal to the interior opposite angle.

If two chords of a circle are equal then their corresponding central angles are
equal.