Matter

Picture Vocabulary

Chemistry

Physical Property

Properties that describe matter including color,

feel, smell, boiling point, melting point, and
density.

Chemical Property

Properties that include all of the possible chemical

changes that a sample of matter can go through.

Intensive Property

Properties of a substance that are not dependent

on the amount of a substance present.

Extensive Property

Properties of a substance that are dependent

on the amount of a substance present.

Heterogeneous Mixture

A mixture with a non-uniform composition in

which the individual components are distinct and
visible.

Homogeneous Mixture

A mixture with a uniform composition.

Solution

A liquid mixture with a uniform composition.

Pure Substance

A single substance, either an element or a

compound, with definite composition and
properties.

Compound

A bonded substance made of more than one

element.

Element

A pure substance, composed of the same

type of atom throughout, that cannot be
decomposed into other pure substances.

Physical Change

A change when a substance does not change its

identity such as changing phase, dissolving in a
liquid, or breaking into smaller pieces.

Chemical Change

A change that occurs when a new substance is created

with different properties; observable as a color change,
the production of gas or a precipitate, or the release of
heat or light.

Matter

Anything that has volume and mass.

Mass

The amount of matter in an object.

Flagella

The physical and chemical characteristics

of a substance or element.

Substance

Elements or compounds that can only be

separated or combined to make substances with
new properties by means of a chemical reaction.

Atom

The smallest unit of an element that has all of the

properties of that element containing a nucleus
within an electron cloud.

Colloid

A homogenous mixture in which the particles are

indefinitely suspended in the medium, which may
be a gas, a liquid, or a solid.

Suspension

A type of heterogeneous mixture in which a

portion of the particles suspended in that mixture
will settle out upon standing.

Tyndall Effect

The effect that occurs when light is scattered

through a colloid, causing the light beam to
become visible as it travels through the mixture.

Qualitative

Any description of the quality of a sample

of matter, such as size, shape, or appearance.

Quantitative

Any description of the quantity of a sample

of matter as found by measuring that sample.

Atomic Mass

The weighted mean atomic mass of

an element based on the abundances of the
naturally occurring isotopes of that element.

Solid

A state of matter where the shape is constant and

rigid, where the volume is constant, and where
the particles vibrate in a fixed position.

Liquid

A state of matter where the shape is variable and

dependent on the bottom of the container, where the
volume is constant, and where the particles move
independently within the liquid.

Gas

A state of matter where the shape and volume are

variable and dependent on the shape of the closed
container, and where the particles are completely
independent of each other.

Fluid

A state of matter that has no fixed shape

or structure, such as a liquid or a gas.

Density

A physical property of matter that is measured by

dividing the mass of the sample of matter by its
volume.

Vapor

The gaseous state of a sample of matter that

would otherwise be a liquid or gas at room
temperature.

Evaporation

The process by which a sample of matter changes from

a liquid or solid state to a gaseous vapor state. This
process is known as vaporization.

Sublimation

The process by which a sample of matter changes

directly from the solid state to the gaseous state without
going through the liquid state.

Condensation

The process by which a sample of matter

changes from a gaseous state to a liquid state.

Freezing Point

The temperature at which a liquid turns into a

solid when cooled.

Deposition

The process by which a sample of matter

changes directly from the gaseous state to the
solid state.

Energy
Picture Vocabulary

Chemistry

Chemical Energy

The potential of a chemical substance to undergo

a transformation through a chemical reaction.

Thermal Energy

The total internal energy of a system and relates

to both of the temperature and total kinetic
energy of the system.

Law of Conservation of Energy

Energy is neither created nor destroyed

in an ordinary chemical or physical process;
also known as the First Law of Thermodynamics.

System

A group of interacting, interrelated, or

interdependent elements forming a complex
whole.

Surroundings

The area around a given physical or

geographical point.

Heat Transfer

The exchange of thermal energy

from one physical system to another.

Kinetic Energy

The energy of motion.

Potential Energy

The energy of position either relative to another

object or to an attractive or repulsive force.

Heat

The movement of thermal energy

from one substance to another.

Temperature

The hotness or coldness of matter as related to

the average kinetic energy of the molecules
of that substance.

Convection

Heat transfer that occurs due to the circulating

movements of liquids or gases as energy is
added or removed, causing convection currents.

Conduction

Heat transfer that occurs between objects

that are in direct contact with each other.

Radiation

Heat transfer that occurs when the movement of

electromagnetic waves transfers heat between
objects.

Work

The change in the energy of an object

as a force is applied to it.