Which statement best describes the sum-of-minterms canonical form?

Which statement best describes the sum-of-minterms canonical form?

• A. It is a full canonical form expressing the function as a disjunction of minterms, each including all variables
• B. It is always the minimal form
• C. It can only represent functions with three variables
• D. It uses only XOR operations

Answer: (A)

Sum-of-minterms canonical form is built by taking the function and expressing it as an OR of minterms, where each minterm is the AND of all input variables, with each variable appearing either complemented or uncomplemented. Each minterm represents one specific input combination that makes the function true, so the whole expression lists exactly those combinations. Because every term includes every variable, this form is a full, standard representation of the function. It’s not guaranteed to be the smallest form, since canonical forms tend to include all possibilities rather than reducing them. This approach works for any number of variables, and it uses only AND, OR, and NOT—not XOR.

Sum-of-minterms canonical form is built by taking the function and expressing it as an OR of minterms, where each minterm is the AND of all input variables, with each variable appearing either complemented or uncomplemented. Each minterm represents one specific input combination that makes the function true, so the whole expression lists exactly those combinations. Because every term includes every variable, this form is a full, standard representation of the function. It’s not guaranteed to be the smallest form, since canonical forms tend to include all possibilities rather than reducing them. This approach works for any number of variables, and it uses only AND, OR, and NOT—not XOR.