Final answer:
A salt is a compound that dissolves in water into anions and cations, typically formed from a neutralization reaction between an acid and a base.
Step-by-step explanation:
A salt is a compound that dissolves into anions and cations in water. This occurs when an acid reacts with a base in a neutralization reaction, producing water and a salt. The balance chemical equation representing this reaction, for instance, can be seen with hydrochloric acid (HCl) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) reacting to form water (H2O) and potassium chloride (KCl), which is a salt. Salts are ionic compounds made up of various cations and anions, which may alter the pH of a solution, making it acidic, basic, or neutral, depending on the properties of the constituent ions. This ties into the Arrhenius definition of an acid and a base: an acid increases hydrogen ion concentration in a solution, whereas a base increases hydroxide ion concentration.