SOLUTION: Hello, I am struggling on ellipses and hyperbolas. I need some help on differentiating the two. How can you tell which is which?

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Question 235866: Hello,
I am struggling on ellipses and hyperbolas. I need some help on differentiating the two. How can you tell which is which?
Answer by Alan3354(21615) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
hyperbola has x^2 - y^2
ellipse has x^2 + y^2
(unless there's an xy term)