Common Names in Organic Chemistry

The IUPAC nomenclature is the standardized official naming rule of organic compounds. Opposed to that, common names are older names for the compounds, which are not official, but some are frequently used. There is no explicit rule for common names, and they are used interchangeably with IUPAC names, so one must get acquainted to both naming conventions.

An example of the difference between common and IUPAC nomenclature is the chemical CH3COOH. Using 'common' nomenclature, the chemical is named 'acetic acid'. However, under IUPAC nomenclature, the chemical is named 'ethanoic acid'.

Functional groups are those atoms or molecules other than carbon and hydrogen in an organic compound. There are a large number of functional groups in chemistry and it is very important to know all of them. Also, you must be able to name compounds containing one or multiple functional groups. Given below is a list of commonly used functional groups along with formula, prefixes, suffixes, and examples.