Properties of Water

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to the chemical and physical properties of water.

Covalent bond

A type of chemical bond where atoms share electrons.

Hydrogen bond

A weak bond between two molecules resulting from an electrostatic attraction between a proton in one molecule and an electronegative atom in the other.

Adhesion

The property of water that causes it to cling to other surfaces.

Cohesion

The property of water that causes water drops to stick to each other.

High Heat Capacity

The ability of water to absorb and retain heat.

Universal Solvent

Water is known as a universal solvent because it can dissolve a wide variety of substances.

Solvent

The substance in which a solute is dissolved to form a solution.

Solute

The substance that is dissolved in a solvent.

Solution

A homogeneous mixture of solute and solvent.

Density

The measure of how tightly packed the matter is, calculated as mass/volume.

pH scale

A scale that measures the acidity or alkalinity of a solution, ranging from 0 to 14.