The Chain Transform

A medium Python interview practice problem on DataDriven. Write and execute real python code with instant grading.

Domain

Python

Difficulty

medium

Seniority

L5

Problem

Given a start word, an end word, and a dictionary of words, compute the length of the shortest transformation sequence that changes the start word into the end word, where each step changes exactly one letter and every intermediate word must appear in the dictionary. Return the number of words in that shortest sequence, counting BOTH the start and end words (for example, hit -> hot -> dot -> dog -> cog has length 5). Return 0 if no such transformation exists.

Summary

One small step at a time can cover a great distance.

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