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Reduce Array Size to The Half

MediumArrayHashingGreedySortingHeap
Solve on LeetCode

Medium · hashing solution for Reduce Array Size to The Half. Python, Go, and a step-by-step animation.

01

Problem

Read the prompt, flip through the examples, then steal the idea.

LeetCode 1338. Reduce Array Size to The Half. The copyrighted prompt is on LeetCode. This page is a working hashing solution for this problem: editable input, Python, Go, and a step-by-step animation.

Constraints

  • —Player inputs are capped so the animation stays readable.
  • —Match LeetCode's own constraints when you submit there.

Examples

Input

nums =
[1, 2, 3, 1]

Output

true

The hash set fires when a value is seen twice.

02

Solution

Python and Go. The walkthrough below runs this same code.

Approach 1Optimal▶ Animated

Reduce Array Size to The Half — hashing

Remember every value you have already seen. A hit means the pattern fired. Built for LeetCode 1338. Reduce Array Size to The Half.

A hash set answers “have I seen this before?” in expected O(1). Walk once, look up, then insert — that order is what keeps an element from pairing with itself.

Algorithm

  1. Create an empty set seen.
  2. For each value x, if x is already in seen, return true.
  3. Otherwise insert x and continue.
  4. If the walk finishes, return false.
Time
O(n)
Space
O(n)
Solution.py
class Solution:    def reduceArraySizeToTheHalf(self, nums: list[int]) -> bool:        seen: set[int] = set()        for x in nums:            if x in seen:                return True            seen.add(x)        return False
Watch this run

03

Interactive walkthrough

Playing “Reduce Array Size to The Half — hashing”. Edit the input, hit Run, then scrub.

Approach: Reduce Array Size to The Half — hashing

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