Chomsky - Greibach Hector Chavez

Hector Miguel Chavez
Western Michigan University

Presentation Outline
• Introduction
• Chomsky normal form
• Preliminary simplifications
• Final steps
• Greibach Normal Form
• Algorithm (Example)
• Summary
May 27, 2009 2

Introduction
Grammar: G = (V, T, P, S)
Terminals T = { a, b }
Variables V = A, B, C
Start Symbol S
Production P=S→A
May 27, 2009 3

Introduction
Grammar example
S → aBSc
S → abc
L = { anbncn | n ≥ 1 }
Ba → aB
Bb → bb
S aBSc aBabcc aaBbcc aabbcc
May 27, 2009 4

Introduction
Context free grammar
The head of any production contains only one

non-terminal symbol
S→P
P → aPb L = { anbn | n ≥ 0 }
P→ε
May 27, 2009 5

• Introduction
• Final simplification
• Summary
May 27, 2009 6

Chomsky Normal Form
A context free grammar is said to be in Chomsky

Normal Form if all productions are in the following
form:
A → BC
A→α
• A, B and C are non terminal symbols

• α is a terminal symbol
May 27, 2009 7

• Introduction
• Final steps
• Summary
May 27, 2009 8

Preliminary Simplifications
There are three preliminary simplifications
1 Eliminate Useless Symbols
2 Eliminate ε productions
3 Eliminate unit productions
May 27, 2009 9

Eliminate Useless Symbols

We need to determine if the symbol is useful by
identifying if a symbol is generating and is reachable
• X is generating if X 
* ω for some terminal string ω.
• X is reachable if there is a derivation X 
* αXβ
for some α and β
May 27, 2009 10

Example: Removing non-generating symbols
S → AB | a
A→b Initial CFL grammar
S → AB | a
Identify generating symbols
A→b
S→a
Remove non-generating
A→b
May 27, 2009 11

Example: Removing non-reachable symbols
S→a
Identify reachable symbols
A→b
S→a Eliminate non-reachable
May 27, 2009 12

The order is important.
Looking first for non-reachable symbols and then

for non-generating symbols can still leave some
useless symbols.
S → AB | a S→a
A→b A→b
May 27, 2009 13

Finding generating symbols
If there is a production A → α, and every symbol

of α is already known to be generating. Then A is
generating
We cannot use S → AB because

S → AB | a B has not been established to
A→b be generating
May 27, 2009 14

Finding reachable symbols
S is surely reachable. All symbols in the body of a

production with S in the head are reachable.
S → AB | a In this example the symbols

A→b {S, A, B, a, b} are reachable.
May 27, 2009 15

May 27, 2009 16

Eliminate ε Productions
• In a grammar ε productions are convenient but

not essential
• If L has a CFG, then L – {ε} has a CFG
A 
* ε
Nullable variable
May 27, 2009 17

If A is a nullable variable
• Whenever A appears on the body of a production

A might or might not derive ε
S → ASA | aB
A→B|S Nullable: {A, B}
B→b|ε
May 27, 2009 18

• Create two version of the production, one with

the nullable variable and one without it
• Eliminate productions with ε bodies
S → ASA | aB S → ASA | aB | AS | SA | S | a
A→B|S A→B|S
B→b|ε B→b
May 27, 2009 19


A→B|S A→B|S
B→b|ε B→b
May 27, 2009 20


A→B|S A→B|S
B→b|ε B→b
May 27, 2009 21

May 27, 2009 22

Eliminate unit productions
A unit production is one of the form A → B where both

A and B are variables
Identify unit pairs
A 
* B
A → B, B → ω, then A → ω
May 27, 2009 23

Example:
T = {*, +, (, ), a, b, 0, 1} Pairs Productions
( E, E ) E→E+T
I → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1 ( E, T ) E→T*F
F → I | (E) ( E, F ) E → (E)
T→F|T*F ( E, I ) E → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
E→T|E+T ( T, T ) T→T*F
( T, F ) T → (E)
( T, I ) T → a | b | Ia |Ib | I0 | I1
Basis: (A, A) is a unit pair ( F, F ) F → (E)
of any variable A, if ( F, I ) F → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
A  * A by 0 steps. ( I, I ) I → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
May 27, 2009 24

Example:
Pairs Productions
… …
( T, T ) T→T*F
( T, F ) T → (E)
( T, I ) T → a | b | Ia |Ib | I0 | I1
… …
I → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
E → E + T | T * F | (E ) | a | b | la | lb | l0 | l1
T → T * F | (E) | a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
F → (E) | a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
May 27, 2009 25

• Introduction
• Final steps
• Summary
May 27, 2009 26

Final Simplification
Chomsky Normal Form (CNF)
Starting with a CFL grammar with the preliminary

simplifications performed
1. Arrange that all bodies of length 2 or more to

consists only of variables.
2. Break bodies of length 3 or more into a cascade of
productions, each with a body consisting of two
variables.
May 27, 2009 27

Step 1: For every terminal α that appears in a body

of length 2 or more create a new variable that has
only one production.
E → E + T | T * F | (E ) | a | b | la | lb | l0 | l1
T → T * F | (E) | a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
F → (E) | a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
I → a | b | Ia | Ib | I0 | I1
E → EPT | TMF | LER | a | b | lA | lB | lZ | lO
T → TMF | LER | a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
F → LER | a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
I → a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
A→a B→b Z→0 O→1
P→+ M→* L→( R→)
May 27, 2009 28

Step 2: Break bodies of length 3 or more adding

more variables
E → EPT | TMF | LER | a | b | lA | lB | lZ | lO

T → TMF | LER | a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
C1 → PT
F → LER | a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
C2 → MF
I → a | b | IA | IB | IZ | IO
C3 → ER
A→a B→b Z→0 O→1
P→+ M→* L→( R→)
May 27, 2009 29

• Introduction
• Final steps
• Summary
May 27, 2009 30

Greibach Normal Form
A context free grammar is said to be in Greibach

Normal Form if all productions are in the following
form:
A → αX
• A is a non terminal symbols

• α is a terminal symbol
• X is a sequence of non terminal symbols.
It may be empty.
May 27, 2009 31

• Introduction
• Final steps
• Summary
May 27, 2009 32

Example:
S → XA | BB S = A1 A1 → A2A3 | A4A4
B → b | SB X = A2 A4 → b | A1A4
X→b A = A3 A2 → b
A→a B = A4 A3 → a
CNF New Labels Updated CNF
May 27, 2009 33

Example:
A1 → A2A3 | A4A4 First Step Ai → AjXk j > i

A4 → b | A1A4
A2 → b Xk is a string of zero
A3 → a or more variables
A4 → A1A4
May 27, 2009 34

Example:
First Step Ai → AjXk j > i
A4 → A1A4 A1 → A2A3 | A4A4

A4 → A2A3A4 | A4A4A4 | b A4 → b | A1A4
A2 → b
A4 → bA3A4 | A4A4A4 | b
A3 → a
May 27, 2009 35

Example:
A1 → A2A3 | A4A4 Second Step

A4 → bA3A4 | A4A4A4 | b
Eliminate Left
A2 → b
Recursions
A3 → a
A4 → A4A4A4
May 27, 2009 36

Example:
Second Step
Eliminate Left
Recursions
A4 → bA3A4 | b | bA3A4Z | bZ A1 → A2A3 | A4A4

Z → A4A4 | A4A4Z A4 → bA3A4 | A4A4A4 | b
A2 → b
A3 → a
May 27, 2009 37

Example:
A1 → A2A3 | A4A4
A4 → bA3A4 | b | bA3A4Z | bZ A → αX
Z → A4A4 | A4A4 Z
A2 → b GNF
A3 → a
May 27, 2009 38

Example:
A1 → A2A3 | A4A4
A4 → bA3A4 | b | bA3A4Z | bZ
Z → A4A4 | A4A4 Z
A2 → b
A3 → a
A1 → bA3 | bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4

Z → bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4 | bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4
May 27, 2009 39

Example:
A1 → bA3 | bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4

A4 → bA3A4 | b | bA3A4Z | bZ
Z → bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4 | bA3A4A4 | bA4 | bA3A4ZA4 | bZA4
A2 → b
A3 → a
Grammar in Greibach Normal Form
May 27, 2009 40

Summary (Some properties)

• Every CFG that doesn’t generate the empty string
can be simplified to the Chomsky Normal Form and
• The derivation tree in a grammar in CNF is a binary
tree
• In the GNF, a string of length n has a derivation of
exactly n steps
• Grammars in normal form can facilitate proofs
• CNF is used as starting point in the algorithm CYK
May 27, 2009 41

References
[1] Introduction to Automata Theory, Languages and Computation, John E.
Hopcroft, Rajeev Motwani and Jeffrey D. Ullman, 2nd edition, Addison
Wesley 2001 (ISBN: 0-201-44124-1)
[2] CS-311 HANDOUT, Greibach Normal Form (GNF), Humaira Kamal,

http://suraj.lums.edu.pk/~cs311w02/GNF-handout.pdf
[3] Conversion of a Chomsky Normal Form Grammar to Greibach Normal

Form, Arup Guha,
http://www.cs.ucf.edu/courses/cot4210/spring05/lectures/Lec14Greibac
h.ppt
May 27, 2009 42

Test Questions
1. Convert the following grammar to the Chomsky Normal Form.

S→P
P → aPb | ε
2. Is the following grammar context-free?
S → aBSc | abc
Ba → aB
Bb → bb
3. Prove that the language L = { anbncn | n ≥ 1 } is not context-free.
4. Convert the following grammar to the Greibach Normal Form.
S -> a | CD | CS
A -> a | b | SS
C -> a
D -> AS
May 27, 2009 43

May 27, 2009 44

Chomsky - Greibach Hector Chavez

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Hector Miguel Chavez

Western Michigan University

May 27, 2009 2

May 27, 2009 3

S aBSc aBabcc aaBbcc aabbcc

May 27, 2009 4

Context free grammar

The head of any production contains only one

May 27, 2009 5

May 27, 2009 6

A context free grammar is said to be in Chomsky

• A, B and C are non terminal symbols

May 27, 2009 7

May 27, 2009 8

There are three preliminary simplifications

1 Eliminate Useless Symbols

3 Eliminate unit productions

May 27, 2009 9

Eliminate Useless Symbols

May 27, 2009 10

Example: Removing non-generating symbols

May 27, 2009 11

Example: Removing non-reachable symbols

S→a Eliminate non-reachable

May 27, 2009 12

The order is important.

Looking first for non-reachable symbols and then

May 27, 2009 13

Finding generating symbols

If there is a production A → α, and every symbol

We cannot use S → AB because

May 27, 2009 14

Finding reachable symbols

S is surely reachable. All symbols in the body of a

S → AB | a In this example the symbols

May 27, 2009 15

There are three preliminary simplifications

1 Eliminate Useless Symbols

3 Eliminate unit productions

May 27, 2009 16

• In a grammar ε productions are convenient but

May 27, 2009 17

• Whenever A appears on the body of a production

May 27, 2009 18

• Create two version of the production, one with

May 27, 2009 19

• Create two version of the production, one with

May 27, 2009 20

• Create two version of the production, one with

May 27, 2009 21

There are three preliminary simplifications

1 Eliminate Useless Symbols

3 Eliminate unit productions

May 27, 2009 22

Eliminate unit productions

A unit production is one of the form A → B where both

Identify unit pairs

May 27, 2009 23

May 27, 2009 24

May 27, 2009 25

May 27, 2009 26

Chomsky Normal Form (CNF)

Starting with a CFL grammar with the preliminary