Chemical Property Examples in Chemistry
Start with the recap, study the fully worked examples, then use the practice problems to check your understanding of Chemical Property.
This page combines explanation, solved examples, and follow-up practice so you can move from recognition to confident problem-solving in Chemistry.
Concept Recap
A characteristic that describes a substance's ability to undergo a chemical change and form new substances with different compositions and properties.
Properties you can only discover by trying to react the substance — they describe what it can become, not what it looks like.
Read the full concept explanation →How to Use These Examples
- Read the first worked example with the solution open so the structure is clear.
- Try the practice problems before revealing each solution.
- Use the related concepts and background knowledge badges if you feel stuck.
What to Focus On
Core idea: Chemical Property asks what the sample is, what property is being used, and whether a new substance is formed.
Common stuck point: Students often know a formula related to chemical property but skip the recognition step: Am I classifying matter or using properties, state, particle behavior, or mixture evidence to describe a sample? That leads to a correct-looking substitution attached to the wrong chemical model.
Sense of Study hint: Ask: Am I classifying matter or using properties, state, particle behavior, or mixture evidence to describe a sample?
Worked Examples
Example 1
easyDefine a chemical property and give three examples.
Answer
First step
1
A chemical property describes how a substance reacts with other substances or changes into new substances.
Full solution
- 2 Examples: flammability (ability to burn), reactivity with acid, and ability to rust (oxidize).
- 3 These properties can only be observed when the substance undergoes a chemical change.
Unlike physical properties, chemical properties cannot be determined without altering the substance's identity. Observing a chemical property always involves a chemical reaction.
Example 2
mediumA student places a piece of iron in water and observes it slowly forming a reddish-brown coating over several days. Is this demonstrating a physical or chemical property? Explain what is happening at the molecular level.
Practice Problems
Try these problems on your own first, then open the solution to compare your method.
Example 1
mediumWhy can flammability only be classified as a chemical property and never as a physical property?
Example 2
hardGold does not tarnish in air and does not react with most acids. Silver tarnishes when exposed to sulfur compounds in air. Compare the chemical properties of gold and silver, and explain why gold is preferred for long-lasting jewelry.
Example 3
easyIs flammability a physical or chemical property?
Example 4
easyIs 'reacts with acid' a physical or chemical property?
Example 5
easyIs rusting (reacting with oxygen) a chemical property of iron?
Example 6
easyIs 'reactivity with water' a chemical property?
Example 7
easyIs toxicity (ability to poison via reaction in the body) physical or chemical?
Example 8
easyIs 'does not react with anything' (inertness) a chemical property?
Example 9
easyIs 'ability to neutralize acids' a chemical property of a base?
Example 10
easyName two chemical properties of a typical metal like sodium.
Example 11
mediumFrom this list, select the chemical properties: shiny, reacts with oxygen, density 8.9 g/cm³, flammable, ductile.
Example 12
mediumExplain the difference between a chemical PROPERTY and a chemical CHANGE, using 'wood is flammable' versus 'wood is burning.'
Example 13
mediumMagnesium ribbon burns with a bright white flame, leaving a white powder (MgO). Which observation is a chemical property and which is a physical property?
Example 14
mediumWhy is 'reacts with oxygen' a chemical property but 'dissolves in water' a physical property?
Example 15
mediumA label warns: 'reacts violently with water, corrodes metals, and is a yellow solid melting at 115 °C.' Identify the chemical properties.
Example 16
mediumHelium does not react with other elements. Is this lack of reactivity a chemical property, and why does helium behave this way?
Example 17
mediumClassify each property of hydrogen gas: (a) colorless, (b) lowest density of all gases, (c) flammable, (d) reacts with oxygen to form water.
Example 18
mediumSodium reacts vigorously with water, while gold does not react with water. Compare these chemical properties and what they tell you about reactivity.
Example 19
mediumBleaching (a fabric losing its color because the dye is chemically destroyed) versus fading a shirt by stretching it. Which describes a chemical property?
Example 20
challengeA new element X is described: 'silvery metal, density 5.0 g/cm³, melts at 800 °C, reacts with chlorine to form XCl2, and is stable in dry air.' List its chemical properties and explain why 'stable in dry air' counts as one.
Example 21
challengeYou are given two white powders that look identical (same color, similar density). Describe one chemical-property test that distinguishes them and explain why a physical test would fail here.
Example 22
challengeExplain why 'iron rusts' is a chemical property of iron, but 'iron is attracted to a magnet' is a physical property, even though both describe how iron behaves.
Example 23
easyIs 'reacts with chlorine' a physical or chemical property of sodium?
Example 24
easyIs 'sour taste of vinegar (due to reacting with taste receptors)' best classified as a chemical or physical property?
Example 25
easyIs melting point a chemical property?
Example 26
easyIs 'reacts with water to form a base' a chemical property of sodium?
Example 27
mediumFrom the list, choose the chemical properties: hardness, flammable, conducts electricity, reacts with acids.
Example 28
mediumA label warns: 'reacts violently with water, releases toxic gas in contact with acids, white powder, density 2.1 g/mL.' Which descriptors are chemical properties?
Example 29
mediumWhy is 'rusts in moist air' a chemical property of iron, while 'attracted to a magnet' is a physical property?
Example 30
mediumHydrogen peroxide bleaches hair. Is the bleaching action a chemical or physical property of ?
Example 31
mediumMagnesium is a silver-gray ribbon that ignites in air to a brilliant white flame, producing white MgO. List the chemical properties demonstrated.
Example 32
mediumA student tests an unknown by dipping it in HCl. Bubbles form. What chemical property has the student observed?
Example 33
mediumHelium does not form compounds. Why is 'does not react' still a chemical property?
Example 34
mediumCompare 'sugar dissolves in water' versus 'sugar caramelizes when heated.' Which is a chemical property of sugar?
Example 35
mediumWhy is 'reacts with oxygen to release energy' an important chemical property for fuels?
Example 36
hardYou have two clear liquids that look identical. Describe a chemical-property test that could tell them apart.
Example 37
hardExplain the difference between a 'chemical property' and a 'chemical change' using the example 'paper is flammable' vs 'paper is burning.'
Example 38
hardChoose: a) silver tarnishes in sulfur-containing air, b) silver has density 10.5 g/cm³, c) silver is shiny, d) silver conducts electricity. Which is a chemical property?
Example 39
hardWhy is 'enthalpy of combustion = -890 kJ/mol' considered a numerical chemical property of methane?
Example 40
hardA safety sheet says: 'reacts with water, density 0.97 g/cm³, melts at 98 °C, ignites in air on cutting.' List two chemical properties.
Example 41
hardWhy is 'soluble in water' a physical property but 'reacts with water to form a new substance' is chemical?
Example 42
challengeDesign an experiment to determine whether an unknown white powder is calcium carbonate (which fizzes in acid) or table salt (which does not). State which chemical property your test uses.
Example 43
challengeA student says: 'A property is chemical if you can write a chemical equation for it.' Critique this statement.
Related Concepts
Background Knowledge
These ideas may be useful before you work through the harder examples.
matterphysical property