Find kth largest element in linked list
Last updated: December 3, 2025
Quick Overview
Given a singly linked list, write a function to find the k-th largest element in the list. The function should take the head of the linked list and an integer k as inputs and return the k-th largest value. If k is greater than the number of elements in the list, return null.
Notion
December 3, 20251
15
4,882 solved
Given a singly linked list, write a function to find the k-th largest element in the list. The function should take the head of the linked list and an integer k as inputs and return the k-th largest value. If k is greater than the number of elements in the list, return null.
Coding interviews at Notion focus on problem-solving approach as much as the final solution. The interviewer wants to see you break down the problem, consider edge cases, and optimize iteratively. Communication throughout the process is key.
What the Interviewer Expects
- Recognize the underlying problem pattern (sliding window, two pointers, BFS/DFS, etc.)
- Discuss multiple approaches and trade-offs before coding
- Implement an optimal solution with clean, production-quality code
- Handle all edge cases including boundary conditions and invalid input
- Optimize both time and space complexity with clear justification
- Test your solution systematically with well-chosen examples
Key Topics to Cover
How to Approach This
- Clarify input constraints and edge cases before writing code.
- Walk through your approach verbally and confirm with the interviewer before coding.
- Start with a brute force solution, then optimize. Mention time and space complexity.
- Test your solution with examples, including edge cases like empty input or duplicates.
- Consider common patterns: sliding window, two pointers, hash map, BFS/DFS, dynamic programming.
Possible Follow-up Questions
- Can you solve this in a single pass?
- What is the worst-case input for your solution?
- Can you solve this iteratively instead of recursively (or vice versa)?
- What if the input doesn't fit in memory?
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Problem Analysis
This problem revolves around finding the k-th largest element in a singly linked list. The appropriate pattern to apply here is the use of a min-heap (or priority queue), which allows us to efficientl...
Approach
- Initialize a min-heap to keep track of the largest k elements.
- Traverse the linked list node by node. For each node's value:
- If the size of the heap is less than k, push the value onto the ...
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