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Rules for Naming Ionic Compounds Containing Polyatomic Ions
Polyatomic ions are ions which consist of more than one atom. For example, nitrate ion, NO3-, contains one nitrogen atom and three oxygen atoms. The atoms in a polyatomic ion are usually covalently bonded to one another, and therefore stay together as a single, charged unit.
Rule 1. The positive ion (cation) is written first in the name; the negative ion (anion) is written second in the name.
Rule 2. When the formula unit contains two or more of the same polyatomic ion, that ion is written within parentheses and a subscript is written outside the parentheses to indicate the number of polyatomic ions. Exception: parentheses and a subscript are not used unless more than one of a polyatomic ion is present in the formula unit (e.g., calcium sulfate = "CaSO4" not "Ca(SO4)"; ammonium carbonate = "(NH4)2CO3" not "(NH4)2(CO3)").
Rule 3. If the cation is a metal ion with a fixed charge, the name of the cation is the same as the name of the (neutral metal) element from which it is derived (e.g., Na+ = "sodium", Ca2+ = "calcium", Al3+ = "aluminum"). If the cation is a metal ion with a variable charge, the charge on the cation is indicated by using a Roman numeral, within parentheses, immediately following the name of the cation (e.g., Fe3+ = "iron(III)", Fe2+ = "iron(II)").
Rule 4. If the anion is a monatomic ion, the anion is named by adding the suffix -ide to the root of the element name (e.g., iodine = I, "iodide" = I-; sulfur = S, "sulfide" = S2-).
Note: Greek prefixes are not used to indicate the number of atoms, or polyatomic ions, in the formula unit for the compound (e.g., Ca(NO3)2 is named "calcium nitrate" not "calciuim dinitrate").
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, (C2H3O2)2Sn?
tin(II) acetate
stannic acetate
tin(II) dichromate
stannous diacetate
tin(IV) acetate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Hg(CN)2?
mercury(II) dicyanide
mercuric cyanide
mercury(I) nitrite
mercury(I) cyanide
mercurous cyanide
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, MnCO3?
magnesium(II) carbonate
manganese(I) carbonate
manganese(II) carbonate
manganese(II) bicarbonate
manganese(III) carbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, PbCO3?
lead(IV) carbonate
lead bicarbonate
potassium carbonate
lead(II) carbonate
lead(II) bicarbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Pb(NO3)2?
lead(II) dinitrite
lead permanganate
lead(IV) nitrate
lead(II) cyanide
lead(II) nitrate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, CuCN?
cuprous cyanide
copper(II) cyanide
cupric nitrate
cupric cyanide
copper(I) nitrite
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, CuSO4?
cuprous sulfate
copper(II) sulfate
copper(I) sulfite
copper(I) sulfate
cupric hydrogen sulfate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Al(OH)3?
americium hydroxide
aluminum carbonate
aluminum hydroxide
antimony hydroxide
aluminum(III) trihydroxide
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, (C2H3O2)2Zn?
acetic zincate
zinc carbonate
zinc diacetate
zinc acetate
zinc(II) hydrogen carbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, BaCrO4?
barium(II) carbonate
barium dichromate
beryllium chromate
barium perchlorate
barium chromate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Sr(NO3)2?
strontium nitrate
silver nitrate
strontium(II) nitrite
strontium permanganate
sulfur nitrate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, CaHPO4?
calcium dihydrogen phosphate
calcium hydrogen phosphate
carbon biphosphate
calcium phosphate
calcium(II) hydrogen carbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Mg(ClO4)2?
manganese perchlorate
magnesium hypochlorite
magnesium perchlorate
magnesium chlorate
magnesium(II) dichlorate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Cs2CO3?
carbon carbonate
cesium hydrogen carbonate
cesium acetate
cesium carbonate
calcium carbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Cs2Cr2O7?
cesium chromate
calcium dichromate
dicesium dichromate
dicesium chromate
cesium dichromate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, CsMnO4?
cesium permanganate
cesium manganate
calcium permanganate
manganese ceside
cesium(I) manganate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, (NH4)2Cr2O7?
diammonium dichromate
ammonium dichromate
ammonium carbonate
ammonium chromate
diammonium dicarbonate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, NH4HCO3?
ammonium carbonate
ammonium chromate
ammonium hydrogen carbonate
ammonium acetate
ammonium cyanide
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, NH4HSO4?
diammonium hydrogen sulfate
ammonium sulfate
ammonium sulfite
ammonium hydrogen sulfate
diammonium sulfate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Na2SO3?
sodium sulfate
disodium sulfate
sodium hydrogen sulfate
disodium sulfite
sodium sulfite
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, KH2PO4?
potassium dihydrogen phosphate
potassium phosphate
krypton dihydrogen phosphate
potassium hydrogen phosphate
potassium hydrogen sulfate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, Li3PO4?
trilithium phosphate
lithium phosphate
lithium hydrogen phosphate
lithium dihydrogen phosphate
trilithium hydrogen phosphate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, NaClO2?
sodium chlorate
sodium hypochlorite
sodium chlorite
sodium chloride
sodium perchlorate
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, NaClO3?
sodium chloride
sodium hypochlorite
sodium perchlorate
sodium chlorate
sodium chlorite
What is the correct name for the ionic compound, KNO2?
potassium nitrate
krypton nitrite
potassium permanganate
krypton nitrate
potassium nitrite
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, stannic nitrate?
Sn(NO3)4
Sn2(NO3)4
Sn(NO3)2
Sn4NO3
Sn(NO2)4
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, mercury(I) sulfate?
Hg2(SO4)2
Hg2SO4
Hg(SO4)2
HgSO4
Hg2SO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, lead(IV) acetate?
(C2H3O2)2Pb
C2H3O2Pb
(C2H3O2)4Pb
(C2H3O2)4Ld
(CO3)4Pb
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, lead(II) chromate?
LdCrO4
Pb(CrO4)2
Pb2CrO4
PbCrO4
PbCO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, cuprous acetate?
(C2H3O2)2Cu
CuCO3
C2H3O2Cu2
CuCrO4
C2H3O2Cu
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, copper(II) hydroxide?
Cu(OH)2
CuOH
Cu2OH
Cu2(OH)2
Co(OH)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, cobalt(II) hydroxide?
CoOH
Co(OH)2
Co2(OH)2
Co2OH
Ca(OH)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, aluminum sulfate?
AlSO4
Al3(SO4)2
Al2(SO4)3
Am2(SO4)3
Al2(SO4)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, zinc cyanide?
Zn(CN)4
ZnCN
Zn2CN
Zn(CN)2
Zn4CN
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, barium perchlorate?
BaClO4
Ba2ClO4
B(ClO4)2
Ba(ClO4)3
Ba(ClO4)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, calcium carbonate?
CaCO3
Ca(CO3)2
CaHCO3
CmCO3
Ca2CO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, calcium hypochlorite?
Ca(ClO2)2
Ca(OCl)2
CaOCl
Ca(ClO3)2
Ca(ClO4)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, magnesium sulfate?
Mg(SO4)2
MnSO4
MgSO4
Mg2SO4
MgSO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, cesium chromate?
CsCrO4
Cs2(CrO4)2
Ce2CrO4
Cs2CrO4
Cs2Cr2O7
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, cesium hydrogen carbonate?
Cs(HCO3)2
CsCO3
Cs2HCO3
CeHCO3
CsHCO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, ammonium chromate?
(NH4)2CrO4
(NH4)2Cr2O7
NH4CrO4
NH4(CrO4)2
AmCrO4
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, ammonium dihydrogen phosphate?
(NH4)2H2PO4
NH4H2PO4
NH4(H2PO4)2
(NH4)2HPO4
(NH4)3PO4
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, ammonium hydrogen phosphate?
(NH4)3PO4
NH4H2PO4
(NH4)2HPO4
NH4(HPO4)2
(NH4)2(HPO4)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, ammonium perchlorate?
(NH4)2ClO4
NH4ClO3
NH4(ClO4)2
NH4ClO4
NH4ClO2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, potassium sulfite?
PSO3
KSO3
K2SO4
KSO4
K2SO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, potassium phosphate?
K3PO4
K2HPO4
KH2PO4
P3PO4
K2PO4
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, sodium nitrite?
NaNO3
NaNO2
Na2NO2
SNO2
Na(NO2)2
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, potassium chlorate?
KClO2
KClO4
KClO3
KClO
K2ClO3
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, potassium permanganate?
PMnO4
K2MnO4
K(MnO4)2
KMnO4
KClO4
What is the correct formula unit for the ionic compound, potassium hydrogen sulfate?
K2SO4
K2HSO4
K(HSO4)2
PHSO4
KHSO4
The formula unit for the ionic compound, tin(IV) acetate, consists of which of the following?
1 Sn4+ ion and 4 C2H3O2- ions
1 Sn2+ ion and 2 C2H3O2- ions
1 Sn4+ ion and 2 C2H3O22- ions
1 Sn4+ ion and 2 CO32- ions
1 Sn2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, stannous sulfate, consists of which of the following?
1 Sn2+ ion and 1 SO42- ion
1 Sn4+ ion and 2 SO42- ions
1 Sn4+ ion and 2 SO32- ions
1 Sn2+ ion and 1 SO32- ion
2 Sn+ ions and 1 SO42- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, mercuric acetate, consists of which of the following?
1 Hg22+ ion and 2 C2H3O2- ions
1 Hg+ ion and 1 C2H3O2- ions
1 Hg2+ ion and 2 C2H3O2- ions
1 Hg2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
1 Hg2+ ion and 1 CO32- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, mercury(II) sulfate, consists of which of the following?
1 Hg2+ ion and 1 SO32- ion
1 Hg22+ ion and 1 SO42- ion
2 Hg+ ions and 1 SO42- ion
1 Hg2+ ion and 1 SO42- ion
1 Hg2+ ion and 2 SO4- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, lead(II) sulfate, consists of which of the following?
1 Pb4+ ion and 2 SO42- ions
1 Pb2+ ion and 1 SO32- ion
1 Pb2+ ion and 2 SO3- ions
1 Pb4+ ion and 1 SO44- ion
1 Pb2+ ion and 1 SO42- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, cadmium carbonate, consists of which of the following?
1 Cd2+ ion and 1 CO32- ion
2 Cd+ ions and 1 CO32- ion
1 Cd2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
2 Cd+ ions and 1 HCO32- ion
1 Cd+ ion and 1 HCO3- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, cadmium hydroxide, consists of which of the following?
2 Cd+ ions and 1 OH2- ion
1 Cd2+ ion and 2 OH- ions
2 Cd+ ions and 2 OH- ions
1 Cd2+ ion and 1 OH2- ion
1 Cd+ ion and 1 OH- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, barium carbonate, consists of which of the following?
2 Ba+ ions and 1 CO32- ion
1 Ba2+ ion and 2 CO3- ions
1 Ba2+ ion and 1 CO32- ion
1 Ba2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
1 Ba+ ion and 1 CO3- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, barium nitrate, consists of which of the following?
2 Ba+ ions and 1 NO32- ion
1 Ba2+ ion and 1 NO32- ions
1 Ba2+ ion and 2 NO2- ions
1 Ba2+ ion and 2 NO3- ions
1 Ba+ ion and 1 NO2- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, calcium hydroxide, consists of which of the following?
2 Ca+ ions and 2 OH- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 1 OH2- ions
1 Ca+ ion and 1 OH- ion
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 OH- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, magnesium hydroxide, consists of which of the following?
1 Mg2+ ion and 2 OH- ions
1 Mg2+ ion and 1 OH2- ion
1 Mn2+ ion and 2 OH- ions
1 Mg2+ ion and 1 OH- ion
1 Mg2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, cesium perchlorate, consists of which of the following?
1 Cs2+ ion and 2 ClO4- ions
1 Cs+ ion and 1 ClO4- ion
1 Cs+ ion and 1 ClO3- ion
1 Cs+ ion and 1 ClO2- ion
1 Cs+ ion and 1 ClO- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, ammoniuim nitrate, consists of which of the following?
2 NH4+ ions and 1 NO32- ion
1 NH4+ ion and 1 NO2- ion
1 NH4+ ion and 1 NO3- ion
1 NH42+ ion and 2 NO3- ions
1 NH42+ ion and 2 NO2- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, sodiuim chlorate, consists of which of the following?
2 Na+ ions and 1 ClO32- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 ClO2- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 ClO- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 ClO3- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 ClO4- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, calcium hypochlorite, consists of which of the following?
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 ClO2- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 Cl- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 ClO3- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 ClO4- ions
1 Ca2+ ion and 2 ClO- ions
The formula unit for the ionic compound, sodium dichromate, consists of which of the following?
2 Na+ ions and 1 Cr2O72- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 Cr2O72- ion
1 Na+ ion and 1 Cr2O7- ion
1 Na2+ ion and 1 Cr2O72- ion
4 Na+ ions and 1 Cr2O74- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, cesium hydrogen carbonate, consists of which of the following?
1 Cs2+ ion and 2 HCO3- ions
1 Cs+ ion and 1 HCO3- ion
1 Cs2+ ion and 1 CO32- ion
2 Cs+ ions and 1 HCO32- ion
2 Cs+ ions and 1 CO32- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, lithium phosphate, consists of which of the following?
2 Li+ ions and 1 HPO42- ion
1 Li+ ion and 1 H2PO4- ion
3 Li+ ions and 1 PO43- ion
1 Li+ ion and 1 PO4- ion
2 Li+ ions and 1 PO42- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, ammonium hydrogen sulfate, consists of which of the following?
2 NH4+ ions and 1 SO42- ion
2 NH4+ ions and 1 HSO42- ion
1 NH4- ion and 1 HSO4+ ion
1 NH4+ ion and 1 HSO4- ion
1 NH4+ ion and 1 SO4- ion
The formula unit for the ionic compound, mercurous sulfate, consists of which of the following?