Answer: Whenever an equation has a real root, the solutions or roots of the equation are real numbers. Using the discriminant, one can check whether the roots of an equation are rational, irrational, or imaginary, for example, for a quadratic equation. The discriminant in the equation a x^2 +bx + c =0 where a, b, and c are constants, is b^2 -4ac. If the discriminant equals 0, there is only one real solution.