In how many different ways can the letters of the word RIDDLED be arranged?
Aptitude
Permutation and Combination
Difficulty: Medium
Choose an option
-
A840
-
B1680
-
C2520
-
D5040
-
ENone of these
Answer
Correct Answer: 840
Explanation
### Concept & Logic
When a word has $n$ total letters but some letters are repeated, the total number of distinct arrangements is $n!$ divided by the factorial of the frequency of each repeated letter.
$$P = \frac{n!}{p! \times q! \dots}$$
### Step-by-Step Solution
- **Given:** The word 'RIDDLED'.
- Count total letters: $n = 7$.
- Calculate the frequency of each letter:
- R appears $1$ time.
- I appears $1$ time.
- D appears $3$ times.
- L appears $1$ time.
- E appears $1$ time.
- Apply the formula to find the total ways = $\frac{7!}{3!}$.
- Calculate: $\frac{5040}{6} = 840$.
### Exam Strategy & Shortcut
Instead of computing $7!$ entirely and then dividing, expand out and cancel terms dynamically: $\frac{7 \times 6 \times 5 \times 4 \times 3!}{3!} = 7 \times 6 \times 5 \times 4 = 840$.
### Common Pitfall
Forgetting to divide by the factorial of the repeated letters altogether, which would incorrectly yield an unadjusted $5040$.
### Final Answer
Therefore, the correct answer is **840**.