naming conventions

cation

this always comes first when naming ionic compounds

cation anion-ide

compound containing monatomic ions

sodium chloride

example for compound containing monatomic ions

cation anion

compounds containing polyatomic ion(s)

ammonium chloride

example for compounds containing polyatomic ions

cation (charge) anion-ide

compounds containing a metal ion with a variable charge

iron(III) oxide

example for metal ions containing a variable charge

prefix-more metallic element prefix-less metallic element

covalent compounds

dihydrogen monoxide

example for covalent compounds

hydro-nonmetal-ic acid

binary acids (hydrogen + nonmetal)

hydrochloric acid

example for binary acids

polyatomic

oxyacids usually contain these types of ions

anion(ic/ous) acid

oxyacids (hydrogen + oxygen + nonmetal)

I ate icky but it’s alr-ite with ous

mnemonic for oxyacids

sulfuric acid

example for oxyacids

hydrogen

you eliminate this from the name of oxyacids