A chemical breakdown of a compound due to reaction with water

• A. Hydrolysis
• B. Hydration
• C. Dehydration synthesis
• D. Oxidation

Answer: (A)

Hydrolysis is the chemical breakdown of a compound caused by reaction with water. In hydrolysis, a water molecule donates a hydrogen to one fragment and an hydroxyl group to another, effectively cleaving a covalent bond and splitting the molecule into smaller parts. This is common in biology during digestion, where enzymes catalyze the addition of water to break peptide bonds in proteins, glycosidic bonds in carbohydrates, or ester bonds in lipids. Hydration, by contrast, means water molecules simply associate with a substance without breaking its covalent bonds, which can change solubility or structure but doesn’t split the molecule. Dehydration synthesis is the opposite process, where two molecules covalently join with the removal of a water molecule. Oxidation involves electron transfer or changes in oxidation state and is not defined by reaction with water to break a molecule.