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Permutations and Combinations

1. Permutations:
The ways in which a number of given objects can be arranged by taking all of
them or a specified number of objects out of them are called PERMUTATIONS.
Thus the number of permutations of three objects, viz. a, b, and c, taking all of
them at a time is 6 i.e., abc, acb, bcd, bac, cab and cba.

The number of ways in which 2 objects can be taken and arranged out of 3
objects a, b and c is 6, viz. ab, ba, bc, cb, ac and ca.

The number of permutations of r things our of n things is denoted by npr.

Formula for nPr:
1. nPr = n(n-1) (n-2) ……(1)
n(n-1) (n-2) …….1 is denoted by n . It may be noted that O =1
2. O =1
n
3. nPr = or n(n-1)(n-2)……(n-r+1)
n-r
Example: 10P4
10
or 10 × 9 × 8 × 73
6
4. The number of ways in which n objects can be arranged in a circle is
n −1

1. Combinations:
The ways in which a specified number of objects can be taken out of a given
number of objects (without regard to their arrangements) are called
Combinations. The symbol nCr denotes the number of combinations or r
things out of n things. Thus, for example the number of combinations of 2
objects out of three given objects a, b and c is 3, viz. ab, ca, bc.

Formula for nCr:

n n(n − 1)(n − 2)......(n − r + 1)
nCr = =
r n −r 1 × 2 × 3....r
10 × 9 × 8 × 7
Example 10C4 =
1×2×3× 4

Other important formulas:

nP r
1. nCr =
r
C C
2. n r = n n-r
3. nCr + nCr-1 = (n+1)Cr
4. nC0 + nC1 + nC2 + nC3 + ….. nCn = 2 n

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