| Command Summary | Command Syntax | Calculator Compatibility | Token Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Returns the tangent of a real number. | tan(angle) | TI-83/84/+/SE | 1 byte |
Menu Location
Press TAN
The tan( Command
tan(θ) calculates the tangent of the angle θ, which is defined by \(\tan \theta=\frac{\sin \theta}{\cos \theta}\)
The value returned depends on whether the calculator is in Radian or Degree mode. A full rotation around a circle is 2π radians, which is equal to 360°. The conversion from radians to degrees is angle180/π and from degrees to radians is angleπ/180. The tan( command also works on a list of real numbers.
Since tangent is defined as the quotient of sine divided by cosine, it is undefined for any angle such that cos(θ)=0.
In radians:
tan(π/4)
1
In degrees:
tan(45)
1
Advanced Uses
You can bypass the mode setting by using the ° (degree) and r (radian) symbols. These next two commands will return the same values no matter if your calculator is in degrees or radians:
tan(45°)
1
tan(π/4¹ )
1
Error Conditions
- ERR:DATA TYPE is thrown if you supply a matrix or a complex argument.
- ERR:DOMAIN is thrown if you supply an angle of π/2±nπ (in radians, where n is an integer) or 90±180n (in degrees, where n is an integer), or when the input is ≥1E12.