permutation
the act of permuting or permutating; alteration; transformation.
Mathematics.
the act of changing the order of elements arranged in a particular order, as abc into acb, bac, etc., or of arranging a number of elements in groups made up of equal numbers of the elements in different orders, as a and b in ab and ba; a one-to-one transformation of a set with a finite number of elements.
any of the resulting arrangements or groups.: Compare combination (def. 8b).
Origin of permutation
1Other words for permutation
Other words from permutation
- per·mu·ta·tion·al, adjective
- per·mu·ta·tion·ist, noun
Words Nearby permutation
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use permutation in a sentence
It’s a hokey setup, but Duchovny is spiritedly determined to work through the various permutations of this man-and-Mammon tale.
David Duchovny wants to be taken seriously as a novelist. His new book makes a good case. | Mark Athitakis | February 1, 2021 | Washington PostRejewski applied the branch of mathematics devoted to permutations to the problem — an approach that would look obvious only after he used it.
Hackers thrive on the weak link in cybersecurity: People | Gershom Gorenberg | February 1, 2021 | Washington PostThat a story set in 19th-century England thrives in this country so ubiquitously, in so many permutations, remains a bit of a wonder.
Theaters are shut, but ‘A Christmas Carol’ is forever. The endless variety online proves it. | Peter Marks | December 17, 2020 | Washington PostThis problem was equivalent to finding the probability that a random permutation of five people was also a derangement, meaning no one wound up in their own starting position.
How High Can You Count With Menorah Math? | Zach Wissner-Gross | December 11, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightUsually in order to find them you need to go fishing in the sea of permutations of different elements.
The Manson family was its most grotesque and dangerous permutation.
The economic reform wrought is largely of the nature of a permutation in the methods of conspicuous waste.
The Theory of the Leisure Class | Thorstein VeblenWe may thus select the four coins in one hundred ways, and the four removed may be arranged by permutation in twenty-four ways.
Amusements in Mathematics | Henry Ernest DudeneyThis permutation is made very convenient by the sentences being printed in sections which may be moved about and combined at will.
Montessori Elementary Materials | Maria MontessoriNevertheless, it is much easier to give the child a vivid impression of them by the permutation of parts than by explanation.
Montessori Elementary Materials | Maria MontessoriReputable authority can be quoted in behalf of every possible permutation of doctrine.
Reconstruction in Philosophy | John Dewey
British Dictionary definitions for permutation
/ (ˌpɜːmjʊˈteɪʃən) /
maths
an ordered arrangement of the numbers, terms, etc, of a set into specified groups: the permutations of a, b, and c, taken two at a time, are ab, ba, ac, ca, bc, cb
a group formed in this way. The number of permutations of n objects taken r at a time is n !/(n – r)!: Symbol: n P r Compare combination (def. 6)
a combination of items made by reordering
an alteration; transformation
a fixed combination for selections of results on football pools: Usually shortened to: perm
Origin of permutation
1Derived forms of permutation
- permutational, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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