 Finite collection of distinct objects |
In mathematics, a finite set is a collection of finitely many different things; the things are called elements or members of the set and are typically mathematical objects, such as numbers, symbols, points in space, lines, other geometric shapes, variables, or other sets.
Informally, a finite set is a set which one could in principle count and finish counting. For example,
is a finite set with five elements. The number of elements of a finite set is a natural number (possibly zero) and is called the cardinality (or the cardinal number) of the set. A set that is not a finite set is called an infinite set. For example, the set
of all positive integers is infinite.
Finite sets are particularly important in combinatorics, the mathematical study of counting. Many arguments involving finite sets rely on the pigeonhole principle, which states that there cannot exist an from a larger finite set to a smaller finite set.