Starting from basic hydrocarbons, Organic Chemistry grows into a massive, diverse field of an almost infinite number of different types of molecule. As the molecules grow in size and new "add-on groups" (we call  these of course "substituent groups") appear, we start to develop new types (or families) of organic molecules. 


Of course these all have to be named, and the only way to make sure that there is some sort of consistency is to have a uniform naming convention. IUPAC over the years have agreed on a naming style, or nomenclature, where certain substituent groups "out rank" others in the search for the name for the compound. 


The below table gives a list of the most common substituent groups and the order of precedence in the naming convention.





Back To >> [A] Naming Conventions (Nomenclature) <<

Back To >> Carboxylic Acids <<

Back To >> Alcohols <<