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Chemistry · Glossary

What is Functional group?

Definition 33.1 School Chemistry — Grades 1 to 12 · Chapter 33 — Functional Groups and Families

A functional group is a group of atoms, other than the carbon and hydrogen atoms of the skeleton linked only by single bonds, that gives a molecule its characteristic reactions. The compounds that share a functional group form a family.

The main functional groups, and the five built on a carbonyl group C=O, drawn in full. R and R' stand for carbon chains (alkyl groups) and X for a halogen atom (F, Cl, Br, I).
The main functional groups, and the five built on a carbonyl group C=O\ce{C=O}, drawn in full. R and R′' stand for carbon chains (alkyl groups) and X for a halogen atom (F, Cl, Br, I).
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