alleryStart learning →In organic chemistry, what is meant by catenation?
ALike atoms sharing one shell
BLike atoms bonding into chains
CUnlike atoms swapping places
DUnlike atoms forming a ring
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. Like atoms bonding into chains
1. A carbon atom can form bonds with other carbon atoms as well as with hydrogen and other elements.
2. That lets carbon atoms link to each other over and over to build long backbones.
3. The bonding of atoms of the same element into longer chains is called catenation.
4. Those chains may be unbranched or branched, and they may carry single, double or triple bonds.
_Source: Siyavula Physical Sciences Grade 12 (Everything Science, CC BY 4.0), Chapter 4: Organic molecules_
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