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Permutations
21st Century Skills
Agenda
Permutations
Permutations With
Permutations Permutations Circular Mixed Practice
Repetition
Recap Practice Problems Permutation Problems
(Identical items)
Permutation
What are Permutations?
Permutation is the arrangement of objects
in a specific order. Use permutations when
the order of selection matters.
Permutation
When Do We Use Permutations?
Example:
Arranging 3 students out of 5 in a line
1 2 3 4 5
1st place ≠ 2nd place → Order matters
Permutation
Permutation Formulas Recap
Case Formula Example
All n objects arranged n! 3 books → 3! = 6 ways
Selecting & arranging r P(n, r)= nPr = n! / (n - r)! 5 students, 3 ranks → 60
With repetition (r places, n options) nr 4-digit PIN (0–9) → 10⁴ = 10,000
Practice Problems
Permutation of All N Objects
Practice Problems - 1
Question: In how many ways
can 4 people be arranged in 4
chairs?
4! = 24
Permutation of All N Objects
Practice Problems - 2
Question: In how many ways can the letters
of the word ‘CAP’ be arranged?
Solution: There are 3 distinct letters
3! = 6
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 1
From 6 students, how many ways
can you assign 3 different roles:
President, Vice President, and
Secretary?
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 1
Solution:
✓ Total students = 6
✓ Positions to assign = 3
✓ Since order matters and no repetition
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 1
Solution:
✓ P(n,r) = n! / (n−r)!
✓ P(6,3) = 6! / (6−3)! = 6! / 3! = 720 / 6
✓ 120 ways
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 2
How many 3-digit numbers can
be formed using digits 1 to 9
(without repetition)?
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 2
Solution:
✓ We are selecting and arranging
3 digits from 9.
✓ Order matters (123 ≠ 321), and no
digit is repeated.
Permutation of Selecting r Among n
Practice Problems - 2
Solution:
✓ P(n,r) = n! / (n−r)!
✓ P(9,3) = 9! / (9−3)! = 9! / 6! = 9×8×7
✓ 504 numbers
Permutations With Repetition
Practice Problems - 1
Question: How many 4-digit codes
can there be using digits 0–9?
104 = 10,000
Permutations With Repetition
Practice Problems - 2
Question: Create passwords
using A–Z (26 letters), length 3.
263 = 17,576
Permutation
Permutations With Repetition (Identical items)
When some items in a group are identical or repeated, not
every arrangement is unique.
We must divide it by a factor to eliminate overcounting
caused by identical items.
Permutation
Permutations With Repetition (Identical items)
Example:
➢ Count number of permutation of arranging
“AAB” in distinct order
➢ If we ignore the identical nature we will get
3! = 6 arrangements
Permutation
Permutations With Repetition (Identical items)
Permutation Visual representation
1 AAB
Same
2 AAB
3 ABA
Same
4 ABA
5 BAA
Same
6 BAA
Permutation
Permutations With Repetition (Identical items)
n! / (p1! × p2! × …)
➢ n = total objects
➢ p₁, p₂,… = counts of repeated items
➢ Swapping identical items does not
create a new arrangement.
Permutations With Repetition (Identical Items)
Example - 1
How many unique arrangements can be formed from the
word "LEVEL" (where L repeats twice and E repeats twice)?
5! / (2! × 2!) = 120 / (2×2) = 120 / 4 = 30
30 arrangements
Permutations With Repetition (Identical Items)
Example - 2
How many unique arrangements can be formed from the word
"BALLOON" (where L repeats twice and O repeats twice)?
7! / (2! × 2!) = 5040 / 4 = 1260
1260 arrangements
Practice Problems
Permutations
Practice Problems
How many distinct anagrams can
be formed from the word
"MISSISSIPPI"?
Permutations
Practice Problems
Solution:
The word has 11 letters, and the
counts of repeated letters are:
M × 1, I × 4, S × 4, P × 2
Permutations
Practice Problems
Solution:
Formula for permutations with
identical items:
Total arrangements = n! / (p₁! × p₂! × ... ×
pₖ!)
Permutations
Practice Problems
Solution: Step - 1
Calculate the total factorial
of all letters:
11! = 11 × 10 × 9 × ... × 1 = 39,916,800
Permutations
Practice Problems
Solution: Step - 2
Calculate the denominator
(factorials of repeated letters):
1! × 4! × 4! × 2! = (1) × (24) × (24) × (2) = 1,152
Permutations
Practice Problems
Solution: Step - 3
Divide to correct
over-counting:
39,916,800 / 1,152 = 34,650
Permutations
Practice Problems
There are 34,650 distinct
anagrams that can be formed
from the word "MISSISSIPPI".
Circular Permutation
Permutations
Circular Permutation
Concept Overview:
In linear permutations, the number of In circular permutations, one object is
arrangements of n distinct items is n!. fixed to remove identical rotations.
Circular permutations of n distinct items = (n-1)!
Permutations
Circular Permutation
● Rotations are considered identical in circular permutations
(i.e., A-B-C ≡ B-C-A ≡ C-A-B).
● If items are repeated, divide by factorial of repeated items.
(n - 1)!
(k1! . k2! . …)
k1, k2 -> Frequencies of repeated elements among the n items.
Circular Permutation
Example 1
Question:
➢ In a circular seating arrangement, 7 friends
are sitting around a round table.
➢ How many ways can they be arranged if two
arrangements are considered the same if
one can be rotated into the other?
Circular Permutation
Example 1
Solution Idea:
➢ For circular permutation, we fix one person
and arrange the remaining n−1 people.
➢ The total number of ways to arrange 7
people around a circular table is:
➢ Ways = (n−1)! = 6! = 720
Circular Permutation
Example 2
Question:
➢ In a circular arrangement of 8 objects, 3 of
them are identical and the other 5 are
distinct.
➢ How many distinct arrangements are
possible?
Circular Permutation
Example 2
Solution: Given
➢ Total objects n = 8
➢ Identical objects = 3
➢ Distinct objects = 5
Circular Permutation
Example 2
Solution:
➢ Step 1: Count as if all were distinct around a circle
(8 - 1)! = 7! = 5040
➢ Step 2: Divide out the permutations of the 3 identical items
7! 5040
= = 840
3! 6
Permutations
Summary Table
When to Use Formula
Arrange all n items in a row (no repetition) n!
n!
Select and arrange r items out of n P(n, r) =
(n - r)!
Form r-length codes/passwords with repetition allowed nr
Arrange n items in a circle (circular permutation) (n - 1)!
Permutations
Summary Table
When to Use Formula
(n - 1)!
Arrange n circular items with repeated elements
k1! . k2! . . .
n!
Rearranging repeated letters (like anagrams)
k1! . k2! . . .
Mixed Practice Problems
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 1
In how many ways can 6 people be
seated in a row such that two particular
people always sit together?
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 1
Solution:
Treat the two particular people as a single “block.”
✓ Now you have this block plus the other 4
individuals → a total of 5 “entities” to arrange.
✓ Number of ways to arrange 5 entities in a row:
5! = 120
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 1
Solution:
Account for the internal order of the block.
✓ The two people can swap places with each
other in 2! ways:
2! = 2
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 1
Solution:
Multiply to get the total.
✓ 5! × 2! = 120 × 2 = 240
240 ways
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 2
In how many ways can 7 people be
arranged in a row if two particular
people must not sit next to each other?
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 2
Solution:
Total arrangements of 7 people
7! = 5040
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 2
Solution:
Arrangements where the two particular people are together
✓ Treat them as a single “block,” so you have 6 entities
(the block + 5 others): 6! = 720
✓ Within the block, the two can swap places in 2! ways: 2! = 2
✓ Total “together” arrangements: 6! × 2 = 720 × 2 = 1440
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 2
Solution:
Subtract to get arrangements
where they are not together
7! − (6! × 2!) = 5040 − 1440 = 3600
3600 ways
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 3
In how many ways can 8 people sit
around a circular table if two of them
insist on sitting next to each other?
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 3
Solution:
Form a “block” of the two who must sit
together. Now you have 7 entities (the
block + the other 6 people).
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 3
Solution:
Arrange these 7 around a circle
(7 − 1)! = 6! = 720.
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 3
Solution:
Account for the two internal
orders of the block
2! = 2
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 3
Solution:
Total arrangements:
720 × 2 = 1440
1440 ways
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 4
In how many ways can 3 identical red
beads and 5 distinct blue beads be
arranged on a circular necklace?
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 4
Solution:
Total beads
n = 3 + 5 = 8.
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 4
Solution:
For a circular arrangement where rotations are
identical (but reflections distinct) and with 3 identical
reds and 5 distinct blues, the count is
(n−1)! / 3! = 7! / 3! = 5040 / 6 = 840
840 ways
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 5
How many distinct ways can 5 men and
3 women be seated alternately around a
circular table, such that no two women
are sitting next to each other?
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 5
Solution:
✓ First, arrange the 5 men in a circular
manner (since it's circular, we fix one
man and arrange the others).
✓ Then, we have to arrange the 3 women
in the gaps between the men.
Permutations
Mixed Practice Problems - 5
Solution:
✓ Ways to arrange men = (5 − 1)! = 4! = 24
✓ Ways to arrange women = 3! = 6
So, the total number of arrangements is:
24 × 6 = 144
Permutations
Key Takeaways
● Permutation:
➢ The arrangement of objects where order matters e.g.,
ranking students or arranging letters.
● Basic Permutation Formulas:
➢ Arrange all n objects (no selection): n!
➢ Select and arrange r from n:
n
n!
Pr = P(n, r) =
(n - r)!
➢ With repetition (choosing r items from n options): nr
Permutations
Key Takeaways
● Identical Items:
➢ When some items are repeated (e.g., in "BALLOON" or
"MISSISSIPPI"), avoid overcounting using:
n!
p1! . p2! . . .
● Circular Permutations:
➢ In round arrangements (like people around a table), one
object is fixed: (n − 1)!(if all items are distinct)
(n - 1)!
➢ With repeated elements:
k1! . k2! . . .
THANK YOU
ALL THE BEST