Question

Given a singly linked list implementation of a list, what is the worst-case time complexity for the following operations (assume that the implementation only maintains a reference to the head of the linked list):

Adding an item to the beginning of the list.

Answer 1

Adding an item to the beginning of a singly linked list has a worst-case time complexity of O(1), regardless of the list size, because it's a constant time operation involving setting a new head for the list.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question pertains to the worst-case time complexity for adding an item to the beginning of a list using a singly linked list implementation. In a singly linked list, adding an item at the beginning involves creating a new node and setting its next reference to the current head of the list, and then updating the head to be this new node. This operation does not depend on the size of the list, so it has a constant time complexity, often denoted as O(1).