Middle of the Linked List
Understand how to apply the fast and slow pointers technique to locate the middle node of a singly linked list. Learn to handle cases with even and odd numbers of nodes efficiently, a common pattern in coding interviews.
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Statement
Given the head of a singly linked list, return the middle node of the linked list. If the number of nodes in the linked list is even, there will be two middle nodes, so return the second one.
Constraints:
Let n be the number of nodes in a linked list.
-
n -
Node.value headNULL
Examples
Understand the problem
Let’s take a moment to make sure you’ve correctly understood the problem. The quiz below helps you check if you’re solving the correct problem:
Middle of the Linked List
What is the output if the following linked list is given as input?
2 → 4 → 6 → 8 → 10 → NULL
4
6
2
8
Figure it out!
We have a game for you to play. Rearrange the logical building blocks to develop a clearer understanding of how to solve this problem.
Try it yourself
Implement your solution in the following coding playground.
// Definition for a Linked List node// class ListNode {// constructor(val = 0, next = null) {// this.val = val;// this.next = next;// }// }import {ListNode} from './ds_v1/LinkedList.js';function getMiddleNode(head){// Replace this placeholder return statement with your codereturn head;}export {getMiddleNode};