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How do you know which element the little number (subscript) goes with?

User Joshmeranda
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2 Answers

21 votes
21 votes

Answer:

The little number you see to the right of the symbol for an element is called a subscript. That number indicates the number of atoms of that element present in the compound. When balancing an equation, you can change the coefficients but not the subscripts.

User Nsave
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27 votes
27 votes

Answer:

you will not

Step-by-step explanation:

the little subscript number just indicates how many of a certain atom is in a molecule... example H₂O... that little ₂ means that there are 2 hydrogen atoms in the water molecule.

there is an invisible ₁ on the O as well. H₂O₁ shows there is one oxygen atom in the water molecule, but we do not show the 1

User Virtual
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