Characterization of n-Vertex Graphs with Metric Dimension n-3

Abstract: For an ordered set $W={w_1,w_2,...,w_k}$ of vertices and a vertex $v$ in a connected graph $G$, the ordered $k$-vector $r(v|W):=(d(v,w_1),d(v,w_2),...,d(v,w_k))$ is called the (metric) representation of $v$ with respect to $W$, where $d(x,y)$ is the distance between the vertices $x$ and $y$. The set $W$ is called a resolving set for $G$ if distinct vertices of $G$ have distinct representations with respect to $W$. The minimum cardinality of a resolving set for $G$ is its metric dimension. In this paper, we characterize all graphs of order $n$ with metric dimension $n-3$.