What term describes the loss of electrons in a chemical reaction?

• A. Reduction
• B. Oxidation
• C. Ionization
• D. Decomposition

Answer: (B)

The loss of electrons in a chemical reaction is oxidation. In redox chemistry, oxidation denotes an increase in oxidation state as electrons are removed from a species. This electron loss is paired with reduction, where another species gains those electrons. A classic example is zinc metal reacting with copper(II) ions: zinc donates two electrons and is oxidized to Zn^2+, while the Cu^2+ ions are reduced to copper metal by accepting those electrons. Ionization describes removing electrons to form ions, which is related but not the general reaction term for electron transfer in chemistry. Decomposition simply means breaking a compound into simpler substances and doesn’t inherently involve electron transfer. So oxidation is the term that best describes the loss of electrons in a chemical reaction.