INVERSE FUNCTIONS

A function that “reverses”

another relation which result
in a new function.
INVERSE FUNCTIONS
Genesis in Reverse
One-to-One Functions
 Represent real-life situation using one-to-one
functions, and
 Determine the inverse of a one-to-one function

Real-life situation using one-to-one function

o One person has one passport, and the passport can only be
used by one person.
o One person has one ID number, and the ID number is unique
to one person.
o A company creates only one product, and that product is
One-to-One Functions
 A relation is one-to-one if each element of its domain
corresponds to a unique element in its range, and each
element of its range corresponds to a unique element
in its domain.
 Each element of the range is the image of exactly one
element of the domain.
Domain Range Domain Range

1 a 1 a
2 b 2
3 c 3 b
One-to-one function Not One-to-one function
Horizontal Line Test
 A function is one-to-one if and only if no horizontal
 

line drawn through the graph of intersects it more

than once.
Example 1
State whether each relation whose graph is given is a
one-to-one function or not.
Answer
State whether each relation whose graph is given is a
one-to-one function or not.

Not a one-to- Not a one-to- One-to-one One-to-one

one function one function function function
  
The function rule of one-0to-one function defines a
second function . This second function is referred to as the
inverse of . If the typical ordered pair for is , the ordered
pair for is , Consequently, the domain of f is the range of ,
and the domain of is the range of .

 
Inverse of A Function
Consider the relation between and :
 
The relation is said to be the inverse of the other. Each
ordered pair of is the corresponding ordered pair of , with
the abscissas and ordinates interchange.
 
Graphically, two relations are considered inverse of each
other if one is the reflection of the other with respect to the
line
 • The graph of and show that they are inverse of one
another. However, the graph also show that the
inverse of a function is not necessarily a function.
• It also confirm the fact that the domain of one is
the range of and vice versa. This implies that to get
the inverse of the a relation, simply interchange x
and y.
  
Example 2
Find the inverse of each function below.
a. b.
 
Solution
To find the inverse of the given relation,  a).
•Replace with
•Interchange and
•Solve for in terms of
•Replace with
Solution
 
b.
 
 
Composition of a Functions and its Inverse
A one-to-one function and its inverse have the
following properties.
i. for all in the domain of , and
ii. for all in domain of
 
Example 3
Use composition to verify if the given pairs are inverse
of each other.
  
Solution
a.) Given:
 
Find  
Find
   

 
Since and are both equal to , then they inverse to
each other.
  
Solution
b.) Given:
 
Find  
Find
   

 
Since and are both not equal to , then they not
inverse to each other.
Practice!
A. State whether each function whose graph is given
below is one-to-one function or not.

Not a one-to- Not a one-to- One-to-one One-to-one

one function one function function function
Practice!
B. Write the inverse of each relation and determine if its
inverse is a function.  
Answer
 

Function
1.
2.
Not a Function

3.
Function
Practice!
C. Find the inverse of each relation.
 
 
Answer:
1.

 
2.

 
3.
Inverse Functions and their Graphs

 Find the domain and range of an inverse

function; and
 Graph inverse function.
Prior Activity:
 
Find the domain and the range of each function and its inverse.
Then, determine whether the inverse is also a function or not.
a.
b. c.
 Solution:
 

• The domain of
• The range of
• The inverse of
• The domain of
• The range of

 
Therefore, is also a function since there is no repetition of the first
coordinate in its element.
Solution:
 
b. The domain of
• The range of
• The inverse of is also a function since
it passed the Horizontal Line Test.
• The domain of
• The range of
Solution:
 
c. The domain of
• The range of
• The inverse of is not a function since it
failed the Horizontal Line Test.
• The domain of
• The range of
Restricting the Domain
 •
There are functions that are not
one-to-one. This means that its
inverse, if it exists, is not a
function. One function that is
obviously not one-to-one whose
inverse exists but not a function
is the quadratic function.
• The graphs of the quadratic
function , and its inverse are
shown at the right.
 Restricting the Domain
• However, the inverse relation of the quadratic function may be
made a function if the domain of the given quadratic function will
be restricted to a certain set of values.
• For functions that are not one-to-one, it is possible to have
inverse functions by restricting the domain. This is done by
considering only a part of the given function that is one-to-one.
 
Example
Restrict the domain of the function so that the resulting function
is one-to-one on the restricted domain.
 
Example
Restrict the domain of the function so that the resulting function
is one-to-one on the restricted domain.
 
Solution
First, let the given function be y. Find its inverse relation.
  
 
• The domain of is • The domain of is

• The range of is • The range of is

 
If the domain of will be  
If the domain of will be
restricted to , the inverse restricted to , the inverse
relation will be a function with relation will be a function with
domain and range of domain and range of
Graphing Inverse Functions
 •
In graphing inverse function, simply follow the graphing
techniques used in graphing other functions, which is to plot as
many points that belong to the inverse function and connect
these points from left to right.
• A basic fact that can be used as a guiding principle in graphing
the inverse of a function is this: Suppose is a point of a
function. Then, is a point of the inverse of the function.
• The graph of the inverse of a function is a reflection of the graph
of the function across the line
 
Example.
Graph each function and its inverse function in one
Cartesian coordinate system.

a.

b.
 
Solution
a.
 
Solution
b.