Variables are letters that stand for numbers
x=5
y=3
j=4
J+X = 9
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You use variables to stand for numbers in algebra
a variable is a letter that stand for another number
Sometimes... some variables can only stand for one thing, like m= slope, but "x" is a variable that can stand for just about anything; slope, axis, and equations.
X and Y do not stand for anything. They are merely letters that represent a variable in an algebraic equation. X is generally used as the first variable, and Y is used as the second variable, to differentiate the difference between two variables so one letter does not need to be used for two variables. In GRAPHS, they stand for the axis line. X is the horizontal axis, and Y is the vertical axis.
Since the Pythagorean Theorem deals with the relationship among the lengths of the sides of a right triangle, it is altogether fitting and proper, and a fortuitous coincidence, that the variables in the algebraic statement of the Theorem stand for the lengths of the sides of a right triangle.