SETS - Important Formula's

What Are Natural Numbers?

Natural numbers refer to a set of all the whole numbers excluding " 0".
Natural numbers are the numbers that are used for counting and are a part of real numbers. The
set of natural numbers include only the positive integers, i.e., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, ……….∞.

Definition of Real Numbers

Any number that we can think of, except complex numbers, is a real number.
Real numbers include natural numbers, whole numbers, integers, rational numbers, and
irrational numbers.

Symbol of Real Numbers

Real numbers are represented by the symbol R. Here is a list of the symbols of the other types
of numbers.

N - Natural numbers
W - Whole numbers
Z - Integers
Q - Rational numbers
Q¯ - Irrational numbers

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Subsets of Real Numbers

All numbers except complex numbers are real numbers. Therefore, real numbers have the
following five subsets:

 Natural numbers: All positive counting numbers make the set of natural numbers,
N = {1, 2, 3, ...}

 Whole numbers: The set of natural numbers along with 0 represents the set of whole
numbers. W = {0, 1, 2, 3, ..}

 Integers: All positive counting numbers, negative numbers, and zero make up the set of
integers. Z = {..., -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, ...}

 Rational numbers: Any number which can be written in the form of a fraction p/q,
where 'p' and 'q' are integers and 'q' is not equal to zero are rational numbers.
Q = {-3, 0, -6, 5/6, 3.23}

 Irrational numbers: The numbers that are square roots of positive rational numbers,
cube roots of rational numbers, etc., such as ⎷2, show the set of irrational numbers.
( ¯¯¯¯QQ¯) = {⎷2, -⎷6}

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What are Complex Numbers?
A complex number is the sum of a real number
and an imaginary number.

A complex number is of the form a + ib and is

usually represented by z.

Here both a and b are real numbers.

The value 'a' is called the real part which is

denoted by Re(z), and 'b' is called the imaginary
part Im(z).

Also, ib is called an imaginary number.

Whole Number

Whole Numbers are the set of natural numbers along with the number 0. The set of whole
numbers in Mathematics is the set {0, 1,2,3,...}.This set of whole numbers is denoted by the
symbol W.

W = {0,1,2,3,4…}

Here are some facts about whole numbers, which will help you understand them better:

 All natural numbers are whole numbers.

 All counting numbers are whole numbers.
 All positive integers including zero are whole numbers.
 All whole numbers are real numbers.
Whole Number Symbol

The symbol used to represent whole numbers

is the alphabet ‘W’ in capital letters, W = 0, 1,
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,…

Every natural number is a whole number. So,

the set of natural numbers is a part of the set
of whole numbers or a subset of whole
numbers

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 Sets Definition

In mathematics, a set is a well-defined collection of objects. Sets are named and represented
using a capital letter. In the set theory, the elements that a set comprises can be any kind of
thing: people, letters of the alphabet, numbers, shapes, variables, etc.

Elements of a Set

The items present in a set are called either elements or members of a set. The elements of a set

a set, the symbol '∈' is used. In the above example, 2 ∈ A. If an element is not a member of a
are enclosed in curly brackets separated by commas. To denote that an element is contained in

set, then it is denoted using the symbol '∉'. Here, 3 ∉ A.

Cardinal Number of a Set

The cardinal number, cardinality, or order of a set denotes the total number of elements in the
set. For natural even numbers less than 10, n(A) = 4. Sets are defined as a collection of unique
elements

Representation of Sets

Roster form
Set builder form
Roster Form
The most common form used to represent sets is the roster notation in which the
elements of the sets are enclosed in curly brackets separated by commas. For example,
Set B = {2,4,6,8,10}, which is the collection of the first five even numbers. In a roster
form, the order of the elements of the set does not matter, for example, the set of the
first five even numbers can also be defined as {2,6,8,10,4}. Also, if there is an endless
list of elements in a set, then they are defined using a series of dots at the end of the last
element. For example, infinite sets are represented as, X = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ...}, where X is
the set of natural numbers. To sum up the notation of the roster form, please take a look
at the examples below.

Finite Roster Notation of Sets : Set A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} (The first five natural numbers)
Infinite Roster Notation of Sets : Set B = {5, 10, 15, 20 ....} (The multiples of 5)

Set Builder Form

The set builder notation has a certain rule or a statement that specifically describes the
common feature of all the elements of a set. The set builder form uses a vertical bar in
its representation, with a text describing the character of the elements of the set. For
example, A = { k | k is an even number, k ≤ 20}. The statement says, all the elements of
set A are even numbers that are less than or equal to 20. Sometimes a ":" is used in the
place of the "|".

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Visual Representation of Sets Using Venn Diagram

Venn Diagram is a pictorial representation of

sets, with each set represented as a circle. The
elements of a set are present inside the circles.
Sometimes a rectangle encloses the circles,
which represents the universal set. The Venn
diagram represents how the given sets are
related to each other.

Sets Symbols

Set symbols are used to define the elements of

a given set. The following table shows some of these symbols and their meaning.

Symbols Meaning
U Universal set
n(X) Cardinal number of set X
b∈A 'b' is an element of set A
a∉B 'a' is not an element of set B
{} Denotes a set
∅ Null or empty set
AUB Set A union set B
A∩B Set A intersection set B
A⊆B Set A is a subset of set B
B⊇A Set B is the superset of set A
Types of Sets

Sets are classified into different types. Some of these are singleton, finite, infinite, empty, etc.

Singleton Sets

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A set that has only one element is called a singleton set or also called a unit set. Example, Set
A = { k | k is an integer between 3 and 5} which is A = {4}.

Finite Sets

As the name implies, a set with a finite or countable number of elements is called a finite set.
Example, Set B = {k | k is a prime number less than 20}, which is B = {2,3,5,7,11,13,17,19}

Infinite Sets

A set with an infinite number of elements is called an infinite set. Example: Set C = {Multiples
of 3}.

Empty or Null Sets

A set that does not contain any element is called an empty set or a null set. An empty set is
denoted using the symbol '∅'. It is read as 'phi'. Example: Set X = {}.

Equal Sets

If two sets have the same elements in them, then they are called equal sets. Example: A =
{1,2,3} and B = {1,2,3}. Here, set A and set B are equal sets. This can be represented as A = B.

Unequal Sets

If two sets have at least one element that is different, then they are unequal sets. Example: A =
{1,2,3} and B = {2,3,4}. Here, set A and set B are unequal sets. This can be represented as A ≠
B.

Equivalent Sets

Two sets are said to be equivalent sets when they have the same number of elements, though
the elements are different. Example: A = {1,2,3,4} and B = {a,b,c,d}. Here, set A and set B are
equivalent sets since n(A) = n(B)

Overlapping Sets

Two sets are said to be overlapping if at least one element from set A is present in set B.
Example: A = {2,4,6} B = {4,8,10}. Here, element 4 is present in set A as well as in set B.
Therefore, A and B are overlapping sets.

Disjoint Sets

Two sets are disjoint sets if there are no common elements in both sets. Example: A =
{1,2,3,4} B = {5,6,7,8}. Here, set A and set B are disjoint sets.

Subset and Superset

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B(A ⊆ B) and B is the superset of set A(B ⊇ A).
For two sets A and B, if every element in set A is present in set B, then set A is a subset of set

A ⊆ B, since all the elements in set A are present in set B.

Example: A = {1,2,3} B = {1,2,3,4,5,6}

B ⊇ A denotes that set B is the superset of set A.

Universal Set

A universal set is the collection of all the elements in regard to a particular subject. The
universal set is denoted by the letter 'U'. Example: Let U = {The list of all road transport
vehicles}. Here, a set of cars is a subset for this universal set, the set of cycles, trains are all
subsets of this universal set.

Power Sets
Power set is the set of all subsets that a set could contain. Example: Set A = {1,2,3}. Power set
of A is = {{∅}, {1}, {2}, {3}, {1,2}, {2,3}, {1,3}, {1,2,3}}.
Sets Formulas

Sets find their application in the field of algebra, statistics, and probability. There are some
important set formulas as listed below.
For any two overlapping sets A and B,
 n(A U B) = n(A) + n(B) - n(A ∩ B)
 n (A ∩ B) = n(A) + n(B) - n(A U B)
 n(A) = n(A U B) + n(A ∩ B) - n(B)
 n(B) = n(A U B) + n(A ∩ B) - n(A)
 n(A - B) = n(A U B) - n(B)
 n(A - B) = n(A) - n(A ∩ B)

For any two sets A and B that are disjoint,

 n(A U B) = n(A) + n(B)

 A∩B=∅
 n(A - B)= n(A)

Properties of Sets

Similar to numbers, sets also have properties like associative property, commutative property,
and so on. There are six important properties of sets. Given, three sets A, B, and C, the
properties for these sets are as follows.

Property Example

Commutative AUB=BUA
Property A∩B=B∩A

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Associative (A ∩ B) ∩ C = A ∩ (B ∩ C)
Property (A U B) U C = A U (B U C)
Distributive A U (B ∩ C) = (A U B) ∩ (A U C)
Property A ∩ (B U C) = (A ∩ B) U (A ∩ C)
Identity Property AU∅=A
A∩U=A
Complement Law : A∪A' = U, A⋂A' = Ø and A' =
U- A
De Morgan's Laws: (A ∪B)' = A' ⋂B' and (A⋂B)' =
Complement
Property

A' ∪ B'
Law
LawsofofDouble
Empty complementation: (A')' Ø'
set and Universal Set: =A

Idempotent Property A∩A=A

AUA=A

U⋂A=A
A⋂ Ø = Ø
Law of Ø and ∪:
A∪Ø=A
U∪A=U

Operations on Sets

Some important operations on sets include union, intersection, difference, the complement of a
set, and the cartesian product of a set. A brief explanation of operations on sets is as follows.
Union of Sets

in both set A and set B. For example, {1, 3} ∪ {1, 4} = {1, 3, 4}

Union of sets, which is denoted as A U B, lists the elements in set A and set B or the elements

Intersection of Sets

The intersection of sets which is denoted by A ∩ B lists the elements that are common to both
set A and set B. For example, {1, 2} ∩ {2, 4} = {2}

Set Difference

Set difference which is denoted by A - B, lists the elements in set A that are not present in set
B.

For example, A = {2, 3, 4} and B = {4, 5, 6}. A - B = {2, 3}.

 A-A=Ø

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 B - A = B⋂ A'
 B - A = B - (A⋂B)
 (A - B) = A if A⋂B = Ø
 (A - B) ⋂ C = (A⋂ C) - (B⋂C)
 A ΔB = (A-B) U (B- A) Symmetric Difference (Delta - Δ)

 n(AUB) = n(A - B) + n(B - A) + n(A⋂B)

 n(A - B) = n(A∪B) - n(B)
 n(A - B) = n(A) - n(A⋂B)
 n(A') = n(∪) - n(A)

Set Complement

Set complement which is denoted by A', is the set of all elements in the universal set that are
not present in set A. In other words, A' is denoted as U - A, which is the difference in the
elements of the universal set and set A.

Q.1) In a club, each person plays chess or carrom or both. The number of people who play
chess, carrom or both are 11, 12 and 3 respectively. Find the people who play either chess or
carrom?

Solution:

Let n(chess)= n(P) and n(chess) = n(Q)

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Then we have n(either chess or carrom) = n(P∪Q) and n(chess and carrom) = n(P∩Q)

Given n(P) = 12 , n(Q) = 12 and (P∩Q) = 3

Applying the set formula, n(P∪Q) = n(P) + n(Q) - n(P∩Q) = 11 + 12 - 3 = 20

Answer: The number of people who play both chess or carrom = 20

Q.2) In a class of 70 students, 45 students like to play soccer, 52 students like to play
baseball. All the students like to play at least one of the two games. Using sets formula
find how many students like to play soccer or baseball ? How many students like to
play only soccer?

Solution:

Given: n(A U B ) = 70, n(A) = 45, n(B) = 52

We are required to find n (A ∩ B)

Using sets formula, n(A ∩ B)= n(A) + n(B) - n(A ∪ B)

n(A ⋂ B)= 45 + 52 - 70 = 27

Students who like to play only Soccer = 45 - 27 =18

Answer: 18 students like to play only soccer.

Q.3) There are 100 students, 35 like painting and 45 like dancing, and 10 like both. How
many of the students like either of them or neither of them?

Solution:

Total number of students = 100

Number of students that like painting, n(P) = 35

Number of students that like dancing, n(D) = 45

Number of students who like both, n(P∩D) = 10

We are required to find n(A ∪ B) i.e., number of students who like either of them and
Using sets formula, n(P∪D) = n(P) + n(D) – n(P∩D)

⇒ 45 + 35 - 10 = 70

Number of students who like neither = Total students – n(P∪D) = 100 – 70 = 30

Answer: 70 students like either of them and 30 students like neither of them.

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Q. 4: Write the following sets in the roster form.
(i) A = {x | x is a positive integer less than 10 and 2x – 1 is an odd number}
(ii) C = {x : x2 + 7x – 8 = 0, x ∈ R}
Solution:
(i) 2x – 1 is always an odd number for all positive integral values of x since 2x is an even
number.
In particular, 2x – 1 is an odd number for x = 1, 2, … , 9.
Therefore, A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9}
(ii) x2 + 7x – 8 = 0
(x + 8) (x – 1) = 0
x = – 8 or x = 1
Therefore, C = {– 8, 1}
Q. 5: Write the following sets in roster form:
(i) A = {x : x is an integer and –3 ≤ x < 7}
(ii) B = {x : x is a natural number less than 6}
Solution:
(i) A = {x : x is an integer and –3 ≤ x < 7}
Integers are …-5, -4, -3, -2, -2, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8,…..
A = {-3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}
(ii) B = {x : x is a natural number less than 6}
Natural numbers are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, ……
B = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
Q. 6: Given that N = {1, 2, 3, …, 100}, then
(i) Write the subset A of N, whose elements are odd numbers.
(ii) Write the subset B of N, whose elements are represented by x + 2, where x ∈ N.
Solution:
(i) A = {x | x ∈ N and x is odd}
A = {1, 3, 5, 7, …, 99}
(ii) B = {y | y = x + 2, x ∈ N}
1 ∈ N, y = 1 + 2 = 3
2 ∈ N, y = 2 + 2 = 4, and so on.

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Therefore, B = {3, 4, 5, 6, … , 100}
Q. 7: Let X = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}. If n represent any member of X, express the following as
sets:
(i) n ∈ X but 2n ∉ X
(ii) n + 5 = 8
(iii) n is greater than 4
Solution:
(i) For X = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}, it is given that n ∈ X, but 2n ∉ X.
Let, A = {x | x ∈ X and 2x ∉ X}
Now, 1 ∉ A as 2.1 = 2 ∈ X
2 ∉ A as 2.2 = 4 ∈ X
3 ∉ A as 2.3 = 6 ∈ X
But 4 ∈ A as 2.4 = 8 ∉ X
5 ∈ A as 2.5 = 10 ∉ X
6 ∈ A as 2.6 = 12 ∉ X
Therefore, A = {4, 5, 6}
(ii) Let B = {x | x ∈ X and x + 5 = 8}
Here, B = {3} as x = 3 ∈ X and 3 + 5 = 8 and there is no other element belonging to X such
that x + 5 = 8.
(iii) Let C = {x | x ∈ X, x > 4}
Therefore, C = {5, 6}
Q. 8: Let U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}, A = {2, 3} and B = {3, 4, 5}.
Find A′, B′, A′ ∩ B′, A ∪ B and hence show that ( A ∪ B )′ = A′∩ B′.
Solution:
Given,
U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}, A = {2, 3} and B = {3, 4, 5}
A′ = {1, 4, 5, 6}
B′ = { 1, 2, 6 }.
Hence, A′ ∩ B′ = { 1, 6 }
Also, A ∪ B = { 2, 3, 4, 5 }
(A ∪ B)′ = { 1, 6 }
Therefore, ( A ∪ B )′ = { 1, 6 } = A′ ∩ B′
Q. 9: Use the properties of sets to prove that for all the sets A and B, A – (A ∩ B) = A – B
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Solution:
A – (A ∩ B) = A ∩ (A ∩ B)′ (since A – B = A ∩ B′)
= A ∩ (A′ ∪ B′) [by De Morgan’s law)
= (A∩A′) ∪ (A∩ B′) [by distributive law]
= φ ∪ (A ∩ B′)
= A ∩ B′ = A – B
Hence, proved that A – (A ∩ B) = A – B.
Q. 10: Let U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}, A = {2, 4, 6}, B = {3, 5} and C = {1, 2, 4, 7}, find
(i) A′ ∪ (B ∩ C′)
(ii) (B – A) ∪ (A – C)
Solution:
Given,
U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}, A = {2, 4, 6}, B = {3, 5} and C = {1, 2, 4, 7}
(i) A′ = {1, 3, 5, 7}
C′ = {3, 5, 6}
B ∩ C′ = {3, 5}
A′ ∪ (B ∩ C′) = {1, 3, 5, 7}
(ii) B – A = {3, 5}
A – C = {6}
(B – A) ∪ (A – C) = {3, 5, 6}
Q. 11: In a class of 60 students, 23 play hockey, 15 play basketball,20 play cricket and 7
play hockey and basketball, 5 play cricket and basketball, 4 play hockey and cricket, 15
do not play any of the three games. Find
(i) How many play hockey, basketball and cricket
(ii) How many play hockey but not cricket
(iii) How many play hockey and cricket but not basketball
Solution:
Venn diagram of the given data is:

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15 students do not play any of three games.
n(H ∪ B ∪ C) = 60 – 15 = 45
n(H ∪ B ∪ C) = n(H) + n(B) + n(C) – n(H ∩ B) – n(B ∩ C) – n(C ∩ H) + n(H ∩ B ∩ C)
45 = 23 + 15 + 20 – 7 – 5 – 4 + d
45 = 42 + d
d = 45- 42 = 3
Number of students who play all the three games = 3
Therefore, the number of students who play hockey, basketball and cricket = 3
a+d=7
a=7–3=4
b+d=4
b=4–3=1
a + b + d + e = 23
4 + 1 + 3 + e = 23
e = 15
Similarly, c = 2, g =14, f = 6
Number of students who play hockey but not cricket = a + e
= 4 + 15
= 19
Number of students who play hockey and cricket but not basketball = b = 1

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Q. 12: Let U = {x : x ∈ N, x ≤ 9}; A = {x : x is an even number, 0 < x < 10}; B = {2, 3, 5, 7}.
Write the set (A U B)’.
Solution:
Let U = {x : x ∈ N, x ≤ 9}; A = {x : x is an even number, 0 < x < 10}; B = {2, 3, 5, 7}
U = { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9}
A = {2, 4, 6, 8}
A U B = {2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}
(A U B)’ = {1, 9}
Q. 13: In a survey of 600 students in a school, 150 students were found to be drinking Tea
and 225 drinking Coffee, 100 were drinking both Tea and Coffee. Find how many
students were drinking neither Tea nor Coffee.
Solution:
Given,
Total number of students = 600
Number of students who were drinking Tea = n(T) = 150
Number of students who were drinking Coffee = n(C) = 225
Number of students who were drinking both Tea and Coffee = n(T ∩ C) = 100
n(T U C) = n(T) + n(C) – n(T ∩ C)
= 150 + 225 -100
= 375 – 100
= 275
Hence, the number of students who are drinking neither Tea nor Coffee = 600 – 275 = 325

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