Context-Free Grammars

Formalism
Derivations
Left- and Rightmost Derivations

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 Informal Comments
 A context-free grammar is a notation
for describing languages.
 It is more powerful than finite automata
or RE’s, but still cannot define all
possible languages.
 Useful for nested structures, e.g.,
parentheses in programming languages.

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Example: CFG for { 0n1n | n > 1}
 Productions:
S -> 01
S -> 0S1
 Basis: 01 is in the language.
 Induction: if w is in the language, then
so is 0w1.

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 CFG Formalism
 Terminals = symbols of the alphabet of
the language being defined.
 Variables = nonterminals = a finite
set of other symbols, each of which
represents a language.
 Start symbol = the variable whose
language is the one being defined.

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 Productions
 A production has the form variable ->
string of variables and terminals.
 Convention:
 A, B, C,… are variables.
 a, b, c,… are terminals.
 …, X, Y, Z are either terminals or variables.
 …, w, x, y, z are strings of terminals only.
 , , ,… are strings of terminals and/or
variables.
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 Example: Formal CFG
 Here is a formal CFG for { 0n1n | n > 1}.
 Terminals = {0, 1}.
 Variables = {S}.
 Start symbol = S.
 Productions =
S -> 01
S -> 0S1
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 Derivations – Intuition
 We derive strings in the language of a
CFG by starting with the start symbol,
and repeatedly replacing some variable
A by the right side of one of its
productions.
 That is, the “productions for A” are those
that have A on the left side of the ->.

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 Derivations – Formalism
 We say A =>  if A ->  is a
production.
 Example: S -> 01; S -> 0S1.
 S => 0S1 => 00S11 => 000111.

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 Example: Iterated Derivation
 S -> 01; S -> 0S1.
 S => 0S1 => 00S11 => 000111.
 So S =>* S; S =>* 0S1; S =>* 00S11;
S =>* 000111.

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 Context-Free Languages
 A language that is defined by some CFG
is called a context-free language.
 There are CFL’s that are not regular
languages, such as the example just
given.
 But not all languages are CFL’s.
 Intuitively: CFL’s can count two things,
not three.
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 Derivations
 A derivation tree or parse tree is an ordered rooted
tree that graphically represents the semantic
information of strings derived from a context free
grammar.
 For example, for the Grammar G = (V, T, P, S) where
S-> 0B, A-> 1AA|E,
B-> 0AA

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 Example
Root Vertex: Must be labelled by
the Start Symbol.
Vertex: Labelled by Non-Terminal
Symbols
Leaves: Labelled by Terminal
Symbols or E

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 Leftmost and Rightmost
Derivations
 Derivations allow us to replace any of the
variables in a string.
 Leads to many different derivations of the same
string.
 By forcing the leftmost variable (or alternatively,
the rightmost variable) to be replaced, we avoid
these “distinctions without a difference.”
 For example: For generating the string aabaa
from the Grammar S-> aAS| aSS|E, A-> SbA/ba

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Example

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 Ambiguous Grammar
 A grammar is ambiguous if it can gener
ate two different parse trees for one stri
ng.
 Ambiguous grammars can cause inconsi
stency in parsing.

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 Example
 S-> S+S | S*S | a | b
 The String a + a*b can be generated
as:
S-> S+S
S-> a+S
S-> a+S*S
S-> a+a*S
S-> a+a*b 16
 Example: Ambiguous Grammar
EE+E
EE-E
EE*E
EE/E
E  id
E E

E + E *
E E
E E E E
id1 * + id3

id2 id3 id1 id2

2301373 Chapter 3 Context-free Grammar 17

 Ambiguity in Expressions
 Which operation is to be done first?
 solved by precedence
• An operator with higher precedence is done before one with low
er precedence.
• An operator with higher precedence is placed in a rule (logically)
further from the start symbol.
 solved by associativity
• If an operator is right-associative (or left-associative), an operan
d in between 2 operators is associated to the operator to the rig
ht (left).
• Right-associated : W + (X + (Y + Z))
• Left-associated : ((W + X) + Y) + Z

2301373 Chapter 3 Context-free Grammar 18