After BPE has an ordered merge list, applying it to a word is a deterministic replay. This lesson starts from one displayed word, applies the existing merges in order, and shows the exact token states.
highlighted = computed this step
Start from one word
Use the displayed word hug with starting symbols h u g. The merge list is the ordered list already shown, and this lesson simply replays that list on one word.
hug:hug
Apply merges in order
First apply merge 1: (u,g) becomes ug, so h u g becomes h ug. Then apply merge 2: (h,ug) becomes hug, so h ug becomes hug. The order matters because the second pair exists only after the first merge.
m1:(u,g)→ug,m2:(h,ug)→hug
Summary
The exact final token list for this displayed word is hug. This is only a deterministic replay of the shown merge order for one word.