Plot the point (-2, pi/4)

We will begin with the graph of the tangent function, plotting points as we did for the sine and cosine functions. Recall that

tan

x

=

sin

x

cos

x

The period of the tangent function is π because the graph repeats itself on intervals of kπ where k is a constant. If we graph the tangent function on

−

π

2

to

π

2

, we can see the behavior of the graph on one complete cycle. If we look at any larger interval, we will see that the characteristics of the graph repeat.

We can determine whether tangent is an odd or even function by using the definition of tangent.

tan

(

−

x

)

=

sin

(

−

x

)

Step-by-step explanation: