Functional Groups

• Alkane: Just carbons and hydrogens holding hands with single bonds only. Very chill. (Like Lego blocks stuck together.)

• Alkene: Carbons with a double bond. (Like two friends holding hands with both hands—stronger connection!)

• Alkyne: Carbons with a triple bond. (Super strong grip, almost like arm-wrestling!)

Groups with Oxygen

• Alcohol (-OH): Like water (H₂O), but one hydrogen is replaced with a carbon. (Think of it as carbon holding a water balloon.)

• Ether (C-O-C): Oxygen in the middle of two carbons, like a bridge. (Oxygen is the “friend” connecting two carbon buddies.)

• Aldehyde (-CHO): A carbon double-bonded to oxygen (C=O) and also attached to a hydrogen. (Like carbon wearing an oxygen mask and holding one hydrogen hand.)

• Ketone (C=O in the middle): A carbon double-bonded to oxygen, but stuck between two other carbons. (Oxygen mask again, but no hydrogen hand this time.)

• Carboxylic Acid (-COOH): Like an aldehyde but angrier—carbon with C=O and an OH group. (It’s sour and acidic, like lemon juice.)

• Ester (C-O-C with C=O): Carboxylic acid + alcohol mixed. (It’s fruity smelling—like candy or flowers!)

Groups with Nitrogen

• Amine (-NH₂): Nitrogen attached to carbons. (Like carbon making a new friend who always talks a lot—smells fishy!)

• Amide (C=O + NH₂): Carboxylic acid + amine combined. (Strong and stable—like proteins in your body.)

• Nitrile (-C≡N): Carbon triple-bonded to nitrogen. (Very tight friendship—like superglue.)

Groups with Halogens (F, Cl, Br, I)

• Haloalkane (C-X): A carbon with a halogen attached. (Like carbon holding a balloon—fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine.)