TACHYON BATCH

for Mathematics Olympiad

WORKSHEET on
Combinatorics

Attempt all these problems, in exam mode, which would mean, devote 5 minutes to understand and complete
problem. In case, you are not able to conclude to the result, discuss this problem with your mentors. All these
problems are a good set to ensure that your understanding of Combinatorics, is well groomed.

1. Prove that (100! + 1) is not divisible by any natural number between 2 and 100.

2. How many three digit even numbers can be formed by using the digits 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (repetition is
not allowed).

3. If n objects are arranged in a row, then find the number of ways of selecting two of these objects
such that they are not next to each other.

4. If p, q and r are positive integers, then find the value of pCr + pCr−1. qC1 + pCr−2 qC2+ …. qCr.

5. Find the number of 6 digit numbers that can be made with the digits 1, 2, 3 and 4 having exactly
two pairs of digits.

6. Two different packs of card are shuffled together. Cards are distributed equally among 4 players,
each getting 13 cards. In how many ways can a player get his cards if no two cards are from the
same suit and with the same denomination?

7. A committee of 5 persons is to be formed out of 6 gentlemen and 4 ladies. In how many ways this
can be done, when (a) at least two ladies are included (b) at most two ladies are included

8. Two integers are selected from the integers 1, 2, 3, …., 91. In how ways these can be selected
so that their sum is divisible by 7.

9. Find number of 4−letter words that can be formed out of letters of the word ‘‘INTELLIGENT’’.

( ) (( m + 1)!)
m −1
10. Prove that m 2 ! m is always divisible by m  N

11. How many diagonals are there in a convex n sided polygon? How many quadrilaterals can be
formed with vertices as the vertices of n sided polygon such that no side of quadrilateral is
common to that of polygon?

12. There are 3 rooms in a dormitory, a single, a double, and a quad. How many ways are there to
assign 7 people to the rooms?

13. How many 10-digit numbers have at least 2 equal digits?

14. How many ways can you put 2 queens on a chessboard so that they don't attack each other?
(Queens attack both on the rows and on the diagonals of a chessboard.)

15. How many ways can you split 14 people into 7 pairs?

16. There are N boys and N girls in a dance class. How many ways are there to pair them all up?

17. Ten points are marked on the plane so that no three of them are in a straight line. How many
different triangles can be formed using these 10 points as vertices?

18. A group of soldiers contains 3 officers, 6 sergeants, and 30 privates. How many ways can a team
be formed consisting of 1 officer, 2 sergeants, and 20 privates?
 TACHYON BATCH
for Mathematics Olympiad
WORKSHEET on
Combinatorics

19. Ten points are marked on a straight line and 11 on another line, parallel to the first. How many
triangles can be formed from these points? How many quadrilaterals?

20. How many ways can you put 10 white and 10 black checkers on the black squares of a
checkerboard?

21. Find the number of ways of displaying 5 flags on 4 masts if all the flags are to be used, and (i)
one or more of the masts need not be used; (ii) all the masts are to be used.

22. Find the number of ways in which n things, of which r are alike, can be arranged in circular order.

23. Show that a selection of 10 balls can be made from an unlimited number of red, white, blue and
green balls in 286 different ways, and that 84 of these contain balls of all four colours.

24. Show that the number of different selections of 5 letters which can be made from five a's, four b's,
three c's, two d’s and one e is 71.

25. Show that a selection of (n-1) things can be made from 3n things, of which n are alike of one sort,
n are alike of another sort and n are alike of a third sort, in n.2n-1 different ways.

26. In the expansion of (a1 +a2 ......ap )n where n is any positive integer not greater than p, prove that
the coefficient of any term in which none of the numbers a1 ,a2, ......ap occurs more than once is
n!.

27. In how many ways can ‘a’ white balls, ‘b’ black ball and ‘c’ red balls be put in m different bags, if
one or more of the bags may remain empty?

28. In how many ways can an examiner assign 30 marks to 8 questions, giving not less than 2 marks
to any question?

29. In how many ways can 5 rings be worn on the 4 fingers of one hand?

30. A party of 10 consists of 2 Englishmen, 2 Scotsmen, 2 Welshmen and 4 men of other

nationalities (all different). In how many ways can they stand in a row so that no two men of the
same nationality are next one another? In how many ways can they sit at a round table?

31. Given n pairs of gloves, in how many ways can each of n persons take a right-handed and a left-
handed glove without taking a pair?

32. There are n points in a plane, no three being collinear except p of them, which are collinear. How
many triangles can be drawn with their vertices at three of the points?

33. In how many ways can 20 be expressed as the sum of four unequal positive integers?

34. Find the sum of all numbers greater than 10000 formed by using the digits 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, no digit
being repeated in any number.

35. A train with M passengers must make N stops. How many ways are there for the passengers to
get off the train at the stops? What if we only care about the number of passengers getting off at
each stop?
 TACHYON BATCH
for Mathematics Olympiad
WORKSHEET on
Combinatorics

36. 2n points are chosen on a circle. In how many ways can you connect them all in pairs such that
none of the segments overlap?

37. Given 6 vertices of a regular hexagon, in how many ways can you draw a path that hits all the
vertices exactly once?

38. Prove that there is an element in the sequence 7,77,777,7777, •• •, that is divisible by 2003.

39. In how many ways can you select three subsets A, B, and C of a set P with n elements, so that
𝐴 ⊆ 𝐶, 𝐵 ⊆ 𝐶 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ≠ 𝜑.

40. Use binomial theorem or otherwise, evaluate following sum:

 n   n+1  n+ 2   n +m 
i.  k  +  k  +  k  + ...........  k 
       
  
2n 2n −1   2n − 2  n 
n
ii.  0  −  1  +  2  + ...........( −1)  n 
       
 
2n  2n − 1   2n − 2  n 
n
iii.  n  + 2  n  + 4  n  + ...........(2)  n 
       
        
n m n m n m  n  m 
iv.  0  k  +  1  k −1 +  2  k −2  + ..................  k  0  k  min ( m,n )
           
 
n n n  n 
v.  0  +  4  +  8  + ...........   n   where   is gif
       4 4  
  
 
n n n  n 
vi.  1  +  4  +  7  + ...........   n   where  is gif, n  1
       3  3  +1
   
 
n n n  n 
vii. +
2 5 8 + + ...........  n   where   is gif, n  1
       3 3  +2 
   