Chemistry?

Question

An aim of chemistry is to study properties of substances, that is, how substances appear to our senses, and how they can be changed. Which statement describes correctly one property of water?

A. Water can be represented by the formula H2O.

B. Water is a liquid at room temperature.

C. Water is a very common substance.

D. Water is needed by living things.

This is only one of the questions from a practice test I received for a competition. Can someone please explain and answer?

Answer 1

the answer is B. the question is asking for a property. the others are true about water but they aren't properties. properties directly describe water. they may be physical (appearance, boiling point, etc.) or chemical.

Answer 2

C. Water is a very common substance.

> it is a common substance. Water can be present in all three states: solid, liquid and gas...

Answer 3

If you only talk about the property B is the answer you are after, but “liquid at room temperature” refers more at its physical properties. Chemical properties would be how it react (creates and brakes chemical bonds).

Chemistry also looks at the composition of substances, that would be A

Answer D is more about biology (or biochemistry)

Water is more than “a very common substance”, it is ubiquitous.

Answer 4

B. Water is a liquid at room temperature.