EBNF Notation

This chapter gives a short overview of the Extended Backus-Naur Form (EBNF) notation, which is frequently used in this document to describe file formats and syntax rules.

Listing: EBNF Syntax
   ProcDecl   = PROCEDURE
 ( ArgList ).
   ArgList    = Expression {, Expression}.

   Expression = Term (*|/) Term.

   Term       = Factor AddOp Factor.

   AddOp      = +|-.

   Factor     = ([-] Number)|( Expression ).

The EBNF notation is used to express the syntax of context-free languages. The EBNF grammar consists of a rule set called productions of the form:

LeftHandSide = RightHandSide.

The left-hand side is a non-terminal symbol. The right-hand side describes the composition.

EBNF consists of the following symbols. A brief discussion of each symbol follows.