Question

What is meant by a suffix? What does a suffix represent? Give one example.

Answer 1

Part 1:

1. In the IUPAC naming of compounds, the meaning of suffix is the word that comes after the name of the parent hydrocarbon that is, the longest carbon chain.

Part 2:

1. A suffix represents the functional groups of the compound.
2. Some examples of functional groups are Alcohol, Aldehyde, Carboxylic acid or Carboxyl functional group, etc.

Part 3:

1. For example, Ethanol (${\mathrm{CH}}_3{\mathrm{CH}}_2\mathrm{OH}$).
2. 'Ethan' represents the parent hydrocarbon of two Carbon atoms and ‘ol’ is the suffix that represents the Alcohol functional group.