a = 0.11
b = 0.40
c = 0.16
d = 0.09
e = 0.24
we will draw a huffman tree:
now huffman coding for character:
a = 1111
b = 0
c = 110
d = 1111
e = 10
length for each character = no of bits * frequency of occurrence:
a = 4 * 0.11
= 0.44
b = 1 * 0.4
= 0.4
c = 3 * 0.16
= 0.48
d = 4 * 0.09
= 0.36
e = 2 * 0.24
= 0.48
Now add these length for average length:
0.44 + 0.4 + 0.48 + 0.36 + 0.48 = 2.16
So, option (B) is correct.