What is the general molecular formula for alcohols and what functional group do they contain?

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Multiple Choice

What is the general molecular formula for alcohols and what functional group do they contain?

Explanation:
Alcohols are hydrocarbons that carry a single hydroxyl group (-OH). Replacing one hydrogen on an alkane (CnH2n+2) with the hydroxyl group gives the general formula CnH2n+2O. This is why alcohols are written as CnH2n+2O and why the functional group defining them is the hydroxyl group. For example, methanol is CH3OH and ethanol is C2H5OH, both fitting the general formula. The other options mix in the wrong ideas: they imply an extra oxygen (as in carbonyls), or they identify the wrong functional group (alkyl, not hydroxyl), or omit the oxygen entirely (alkanes).

Alcohols are hydrocarbons that carry a single hydroxyl group (-OH). Replacing one hydrogen on an alkane (CnH2n+2) with the hydroxyl group gives the general formula CnH2n+2O. This is why alcohols are written as CnH2n+2O and why the functional group defining them is the hydroxyl group. For example, methanol is CH3OH and ethanol is C2H5OH, both fitting the general formula. The other options mix in the wrong ideas: they imply an extra oxygen (as in carbonyls), or they identify the wrong functional group (alkyl, not hydroxyl), or omit the oxygen entirely (alkanes).

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