Question

Consider the word RADAR. Whichever way you read it, from left to right or right to left, you get the same word. Such a word is known as a palindrome. Find the maximum possible number of 5–letter palindromes (meaningful or non-meaningful)

(a) 676

(b) 78

(c) 17576

(d) 130

Answer 1

Correct option is (c) 17576

The first letter can be chosen in 26 ways as there are 26 letters in the English alphabet.

Having chosen the first letter, we have 26 choices for the second letter also.

Similarly for the third letter also, we have 26 choices.

The fourth letter has to be same as the second and the fifth letter has to be same as the first letter so 1 choice for each.

∴ Maximum possible number of 5-letter palindromes = 26 × 26 × 26 × 1 × 1 = 17576.