Which statement about salts is true?

Which statement about salts is true?

• A. A salt is always organic
• B. A salt is a covalent compound
• C. A salt is formed only when a strong acid reacts with a strong base
• D. A salt is an ionic compound formed from a metal cation and a nonmetal anion

Answer: (D)

Salts are ionic compounds formed from positive and negative ions held together by strong electrostatic forces. In most familiar salts, the positive ion is a metal cation and the negative ion is a nonmetal anion, giving a neutral compound when they combine. This matches the statement that a salt is an ionic compound formed from a metal cation and a nonmetal anion, reflecting how salts are typically produced from acid-base reactions. The other statements don’t fit. Salts are not restricted to organic substances; many are inorganic, like sodium chloride. They are not covalently bonded molecules; their bonds are ionic. And salts can form from reactions involving weak acids or weak bases as well as strong ones, so formation is not limited to strong acid–strong base combinations.

Salts are ionic compounds formed from positive and negative ions held together by strong electrostatic forces. In most familiar salts, the positive ion is a metal cation and the negative ion is a nonmetal anion, giving a neutral compound when they combine. This matches the statement that a salt is an ionic compound formed from a metal cation and a nonmetal anion, reflecting how salts are typically produced from acid-base reactions.

The other statements don’t fit. Salts are not restricted to organic substances; many are inorganic, like sodium chloride. They are not covalently bonded molecules; their bonds are ionic. And salts can form from reactions involving weak acids or weak bases as well as strong ones, so formation is not limited to strong acid–strong base combinations.