SIMPLIFICATION OF CFG AND
CHOMSKY NORMAL FORM (CNF)
𝑳𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 # 𝟎𝟖
Dr. Imran Khalil
(imrankhalil@[Link])
Contents
• Simplification of CFG
• Chomsky Normal Form (CNF)
• Removing ε Productions/Rules
• Handling Unit Productions/Rules
• Handling Useless Productions/Rules
1
Simplifying CFGs
• In order to simplify CFGs, we take the following steps;
• Removing ε Productions/Rules
• Handling Unit Productions/Rules
• Handling Useless Productions/Rules
2
A Substitution Rule
Equivalent
grammar
S → aB
S → aB | ab
A → aaA
A → aaA
A → abBc Substitute
B→b A → abBc | abbc
B → aA
B → aA
B→b
3
S → aB | ab
A → aaA
A → abBc | abbc
B → aA
Substitute
B → aA
S → aB | ab | aaA
Equivalent
A → aaA
grammar
A → abBc | abbc | abaAc 4
In general:
A → xBz
B → y1
Substitute
B → y1
equivalent
A → xBz | xy1z grammar
5
Nullable Variables
e - production: X ®e
Nullable Variable:
Example:
S ® aMb
M ® aMb
M ®e
Nullable variable e - production
6
Removing 𝜺 Rules/Productions
S ® aMb
S → aMb | ab
M ® aMb Substitute
M ®e M → aMb | ab
M ®e
7
Unit-Productions
Unit Production: X → Y
(a single variable in both sides)
Example: S → aA
A→a
A→ B
Unit Productions
B→A
B → bb 8
Removal of unit productions:
S → aA
S → aA | aB
A→a
A→a
A→ B Substitute
A→ B B → A| B
B→A
B → bb
B → bb
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Unit productions of form X →X
can be removed immediately
S → aA | aB S → aA | aB
A→a Remove
A→a
B → A| B B→B B→A
B → bb B → bb
10
S → aA | aB
S → aA | aB | aA
A→a
Substitute
B→A A→a
B→A
B → bb
B → bb
11
Remove repeated productions
Final grammar
S → aA | aB | aA S → aA | aB
A→a A→a
B → bb B → bb
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Useless Productions/Rules
S ® aSb
S ®e
S®A
A ® aA Useless Production
Some derivations never terminate...
S A aA aaA aaaA 13
Another grammar:
S®A
A ® aA
A ®e
B ® bA Useless Production
Not reachable from S
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A production A → x is useless
if any of its variables is useless
S ® aSb
S ®e Productions
useless
Variables S®A
useless A ® aA useless
useless B®C useless
useless C®D useless
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Removing All
Step 1: Remove Nullable Variables
Step 2: Remove Unit-Productions
Step 3: Remove Useless Variables
This sequence guarantees that unwanted
variables and productions are removed
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CHOMSKY NORMAL
FORM (CNF)
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Chomsky Normal Form (CNF)
Each production has form:
A → BC or A→a
variable variable terminal
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Examples:
S → AS S → AS
S →a S → AAS
A → SA A → SA
A→b A → aa
Chomsky Not Chomsky
Normal Form Normal Form
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Conversion to CNF
S → ABa
Example:
A → aab Not in CNF
B → Ac
We will convert it to CNF
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Introduce new variables for
the terminals:
Ta , Tb , Tc S → ABTa
S → ABa A → TaTaTb
A → aab B → ATc
B → Ac Ta → a
Tb → b
Tc → c
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Introduce new intermediate variable V1
to break first production:
S → AV1
S → ABTa
V1 → BTa
A → TaTaTb
A → TaTaTb
B → ATc
B → ATc
Ta → a
Ta → a
Tb → b
Tb → b
Tc → c
Tc → c 22
Introduce intermediate variable: V
2
S → AV1
S → AV1
V1 → BTa
V1 → BTa
A → TaV2
A → TaTaTb
V2 → TaTb
B → ATc
B → ATc
Ta → a
Ta → a
Tb → b
Tb → b
Tc → c
Tc → c 23
Final grammar in Chomsky Normal Form:
S → AV1
V1 → BTa
A → TaV2
Initial grammar
V2 → TaTb
S → ABa B → ATc
A → aab Ta → a
B → Ac Tb → b
Tc → c 24
Practice Problem # 01
Convert the following CFG to CNF
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵
𝐴 → 𝐵|𝑆
𝐵 → 𝑏|𝜖
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Practice Problem # 01
Step 1: Add new start variable 𝑆0 (only if when Start variable present
in the RHS)
𝑆0 → 𝑆
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵
𝐴 → 𝐵|𝑆
𝐵 → 𝑏|𝜖
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Practice Problem # 01
Step 2: Remove 𝜖
𝑩→𝝐
𝑆0 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎𝜖
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎𝜖
𝐴 → 𝐵|𝑆
𝐵 →𝑏
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Practice Problem # 01
Step 3: Remove unit production
𝐀→𝑩
𝑆0 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎
𝐴 → 𝑏|𝑆
𝐵 →𝑏
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Practice Problem # 01
Step 3: Remove unit production
𝐀→𝑺
𝑆0 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎
𝐴 → 𝑏|𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵|𝑎
𝐵 →𝑏
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Practice Problem # 01
Step 4: Now find out the productions which has more than two variables
in RHS
𝑽 → 𝑺𝑨, 𝑼 → 𝒂
𝑆0 → 𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝐴 → 𝑏|𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝐵 →𝑏
𝑉 → 𝑆𝐴
𝑈→𝑎
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Practice Problem # 01
Initial Grammar CNF
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑆𝐴|𝑎𝐵 𝑆0 → 𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝑆 → 𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝐴 → 𝐵|𝑆
𝐴 → 𝑏|𝐴𝑉|𝑈𝐵|𝑎
𝐵 → 𝑏|𝜖 𝐵 →𝑏
𝑉 → 𝑆𝐴
𝑈→𝑎
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Practice Problem # 02
Convert the following CFG to CNF
𝑆 → 𝑎𝑋𝑏𝑋
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝜖
𝑌 → 𝑋|𝑐
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Practice Problem # 02
Step 1: Add new start variable 𝑆0 (only if when Start variable
present in the RHS)
There is no start variable is the RHS
𝑆 → 𝑎𝑋𝑏𝑋
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝜖
𝑌 → 𝑋|𝑐
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Practice Problem # 02
Step 2: Remove 𝜖 Transitive
Property
𝑋→𝜖
𝑋 → 𝜖, 𝑌 → 𝑋, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑌 → 𝜖
𝑆 → 𝑎𝑋𝑏𝑋 𝑎𝑏𝑋 𝑎𝑋𝑏|𝑎𝑏
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝑎|𝑏
𝑌 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝑎|𝑏|𝑐
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Practice Problem # 02
Step 3: Remove unit production
There is no unit production
𝑆 → 𝑎𝑋𝑏𝑋 𝑎𝑏𝑋 𝑎𝑋𝑏|𝑎𝑏
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝑎|𝑏
𝑌 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝑎|𝑏|𝑐
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Practice Problem # 02
Step 4: Now find out the productions which has more than two
variables in RHS
𝑉1 → 𝑎, 𝑉2 → 𝑏, 𝑉3 → 𝑎𝑋, 𝑉4 → 𝑏𝑋
𝑆 → 𝑉3 𝑉4 𝑉1 𝑉4 𝑉3 𝑉2 |𝑉1 𝑉2
𝑋 → 𝑉1 𝑌 𝑉2 𝑌 𝑎|𝑏
𝑌 → 𝑉1 𝑌 𝑉2 𝑌 𝑎|𝑏|𝑐
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Practice Problem # 02
Initial Grammar CNF
𝑆 → 𝑎𝑋𝑏𝑋 𝑆 → 𝑉3 𝑉4 𝑉1 𝑉4 𝑉3 𝑉2 |𝑉1 𝑉2
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑉1 𝑌 𝑉2 𝑌 𝑎|𝑏
𝑋 → 𝑎𝑌 𝑏𝑌 𝜖
𝑌 → 𝑉1 𝑌 𝑉2 𝑌 𝑎|𝑏|𝑐
𝑌 → 𝑋|𝑐 𝑉1 → 𝑎
𝑉2 → 𝑏
𝑉3 → 𝑎𝑋
𝑉4 → 𝑏𝑋
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Applications of CNF
• CNF enables a polynomial time algorithm to decide whether a
string can be generated by a grammar.
• Simplicity of proofs: 𝜀 free transition for PDA
• Enables parsing: PDA can be used to parse words with any
grammar, this is often inconvenient. Normal forms can give us
more structure to work with, resulting in easier parsing
algorithms.
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Acknowledgment
• [Michael_Sipser] Introduction to the Theory of Computation.
• [Margaret Fleck and Sariel Har Peled] Introduction to the Theory of
Computation.
• [John_E._Hopcroft] Intro to Automata Theory, Language and Computation.
• .
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