*Permutations &

Combinations

Ms. Suchi Patel

Permutation
A permutation is defined as a possible
selection of a certain number of objects
taken from a group with regard to order.
In permutation order does matter.
It is an orderly arrangement of objects.
nPr =

n!

(n r) !
Where, n ! = n x (n-1) x(n-2) x (n 3).
If r = n, nPn = n ! ; Also 0 ! = 1
nPr means the number of permutations of
Ms. Suchi Patel
n things Ms.
taking
Suchi Patel r things at a time.
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Combination
A combination is defined as a possible
selection of a certain number of objects
taken from a group without regard to order.
In combination order doesnt matter
It is selection of objects without order.
nC

n!
(n r) ! r !

If r = n , nCn = 1

Ms. Suchi Patel

Ms. Suchi Patel

1. In the Active Dog competition, a blue ribbon will be

awarded to the most Active dog, a red ribbon to the

second most Active dog, and a yellow ribbon to the
third most Active dog. If there are 8 dogs in the
competition, how many different ways can the ribbons
be awarded?
2. Brandon wants to take 3 dogs with him on his morning

walk. If Brandon owns 8 dogs, how many different

groups of dogs can he choose for his walk?

Ms. Suchi Patel

Examples of Permutations:
1) There are three boys A, B & C. Arrange
them in a row, two at a time.
2) There are three different books Physics,
Chemistry & Mathematics. Arrange them in a
row taking all the three at a time.
3) In how many ways can 5 students be
seated on a bench?
4) Find the number of permutations of the
letters of the word MOBILE
5) Find the number of arrangements of the
letters of the word ARUN. How many of these
begin with A?
Ms. Suchi Patel
Ms. Suchi Patel
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6)In how many ways can 7 different books be

arranged in a shelf? In how many ways can
we arrange three particular books so that
they are always together?

Ms. Suchi Patel

Ms. Suchi Patel

Examples of Combinations:
1) Find the number of combinations of the letters of
the word CAKE.
2) A box contains 5 Blue & 4 Red marbles. In how
many ways can 4 marbles be drawn so as to
include 2 red marbles?
3) In how many ways can 4 people be selected from
a group of 6 among which ashok is one?
4) From 8 gentlemen & 4 ladies, a committee of 6 is
to be formed. In how many ways can this be done
so that the committee contains exactly 2 ladies?
5) There are 6 bowlers & 9 batsmen in a cricket club.
In how many ways can a team of 11 be selected so
that the team contains atleast 4 bowlers
Ms. Suchi Patel

Ms. Suchi Patel

6) There are 8 members in a club, of which A

& B are two members. A committee of 5 is
to be formed. How many of these will
include A & exclude B?

Ms. Suchi Patel

Ms. Suchi Patel

Examples
1) There are 20 people who work in an office
together. Four of these people are selected
to go to the same conference together. How
many such selections are possible?
2) Suppose that 4 people are to be randomly
chosen out of 10 people who agreed to be
interviewed in a market survey. These four
people are to be assigned to four
interviewers. How many possibilities are
there?
3) Nine sealed bids for oil drilling leases arrive
at a regulatory agency. In how many
different orders
can
the
Ms. Suchi
Patelnine bids be
Ms. Suchi Patel
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4) In a new group of 15 employees at a

restaurant, 10 are to be assigned as
servers, 3 are to be assigned as hosts, & 2
are to be assigned as cashiers. In how
many ways can the assignment be made?
5) A 7 - card hand is chosen from a standard
52 card deck. How many of these will have
four spades & three hearts?

Ms. Suchi Patel

Ms. Suchi Patel

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For these 3 statements, answer whether order matters

or does not matter.
A.A man is redecorating his apartment and is putting up 2

paintings side by side. How many arrangements are possible

if he has 6 paintings to choose from?
B.A woman must pick six apples out of a cart of 15 to
purchase. How many different ways can this be done?
C.Alex must read 5 books in the next 3 days. How many ways
can he do this?
D. There are 15 available toppings in a pizza restaurant. If
Maria will order a 4-topping pizza, how many different pizzas
could she order?

Ms. Suchi Patel

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Solution:
A. Order matters.
If a Monet is put on one side of a wall and a Degas on the other, and then they are
switched around, that is a different room design arrangement so therefore, order
matters.
B. Order does not matter.
Since whatever 6 apples this woman chooses to purchase represent one large group
without assignment, there is no order.
C. Order matters.
If Alex must read 5 books in 3 days, it will matter which book he read on which day.
T1 on one day,
T 2 on another day. The prevailing order is the days of the week.
D. Order does not matter.
The order of toppings on a pizza does not matter (does it matter if pepperoni is on top
or mushrooms?)

Ms. Suchi Patel

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