Science worksheet on water properties with multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions.
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Step-by-step solution for: SOLUTION: The Properties of Water Based Discussion - Studypool
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Show Answer Key & Explanations
Step-by-step solution for: SOLUTION: The Properties of Water Based Discussion - Studypool
You've uploaded a worksheet focused on the properties of water, including adhesion, cohesion, surface tension, capillary action, solubility, polarity, and specific heat. Below is a complete, accurate solution with explanations for each question based on standard biology/chemistry principles.
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✔ Answer: Adhesion
🔹 *Explanation:*
Adhesion is the attraction between water molecules and *other* substances (like glass, plant cell walls, or your skin). This contrasts with cohesion, which is the attraction *between water molecules themselves*.
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✔ Correct answers: a, b, d
- a. It helps some insects “skate” across the surface of the water. → TRUE. Surface tension creates a “skin” strong enough to support small insects like water striders.
- b. It refers to the tightness across the surface of the water. → TRUE. Surface tension is the result of cohesive forces pulling water molecules together at the surface.
- c. It is caused by polar molecules repelling each other. → FALSE. Water molecules are *attracted* to each other (cohesion) due to hydrogen bonding — not repelling.
- d. It causes raindrops to form round beads. → TRUE. Surface tension minimizes surface area, leading to spherical shapes.
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✔ Answer: Meniscus
🔹 *Explanation:*
Due to adhesion between water and glass, water curves upward at the edges in a graduated cylinder, forming a concave meniscus. You read the volume at the bottom of the curve.
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✔ Correct answers: a, b
- a. It explains how water moves against the force of gravity. → TRUE. Capillary action allows water to climb up narrow tubes or plant xylem without external force.
- b. It is due to the attraction among molecules of water and surrounding materials. → TRUE. Combines cohesion (water-water) and adhesion (water-material).
- c. It prevents water from moving through materials with pores. → FALSE. Actually, it *helps* water move through porous materials like soil or paper towels.
- d. It causes clothing to dry. → FALSE. Drying is due to evaporation, not capillary action.
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✔ Answer:
*The combined force of attraction among water molecules (cohesion) and between water molecules and the straw’s material (adhesion) causes the liquid to climb upward against gravity.*
🔹 *Explanation:*
In a narrow tube (like a straw), adhesion pulls water up the sides, and cohesion pulls the rest of the water along with it — creating a column that rises until gravity balances the forces.
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✔ Answers:
- First blank: Solution
- Second blank: Solvent
🔹 *Explanation:*
A solution = homogeneous mixture of two or more substances.
The solvent = substance doing the dissolving (usually water in aqueous solutions).
The solute = substance being dissolved.
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✔ Answer: Polarity
🔹 *Explanation:*
Water is a polar molecule — it has a partial negative charge on oxygen and partial positive charges on hydrogens. This allows it to surround and pull apart ionic compounds (like salt) and other polar molecules, dissolving them effectively. “Like dissolves like.”
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✔ Correct answers: a (salt), c (oxygen)
- a. Salt → TRUE. Ionic compound; dissolves readily in water.
- b. Oil → FALSE. Nonpolar; doesn’t dissolve in water (hydrophobic).
- c. Oxygen → TRUE. Small nonpolar gas; slightly soluble in water (enough for fish to breathe!).
- d. Wax → FALSE. Nonpolar; insoluble in water.
> ⚠️ Note: While oxygen is only *slightly* soluble, it *does* dissolve — so it’s correct to circle it. Oil and wax do not.
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✔ Answer: Hydrophobic
🔹 *Explanation:*
“Hydro-” = water, “-phobic” = fearing. Hydrophobic substances (like oils, fats) do not mix with water.
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✔ Answer: Specific Heat
🔹 *Explanation:*
Specific heat capacity is the amount of energy (in calories or joules) required to raise 1 gram of a substance by 1°C. Water’s high specific heat (4.184 J/g°C) means it resists temperature change.
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✔ Answer: True
🔹 *Explanation:*
Yes — water has a very high specific heat compared to most common substances. That’s why oceans moderate coastal climates and why sweating cools us efficiently.
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✔ Correct answers: a, c
- a. It is due to the many attractions among water molecules. → TRUE. Hydrogen bonds absorb a lot of energy before breaking, requiring more heat to raise temperature.
- b. It makes large bodies of water heat up more quickly than nearby land. → FALSE. Water heats *more slowly* than land.
- c. It makes large bodies of water cool off more slowly than nearby land. → TRUE. Water retains heat longer — important for climate moderation.
- d. It leads to warmer air over land than over water on summer days. → FALSE. Land heats faster → air over land is warmer in summer. But this is not *caused* by water’s specific heat — rather, it’s a *result* of land having lower specific heat.
> ✔ So only a and c are directly and correctly tied to water’s specific heat.
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✔ Answer:
*It allows your body to maintain a constant internal environment (homeostasis) by resisting rapid temperature changes, even when external temperatures fluctuate.*
🔹 *Explanation:*
Since your body is ~60% water, its high specific heat buffers you against sudden temperature swings. For example, during exercise, water absorbs excess heat without a huge rise in body temp — helping prevent overheating.
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## ✔ Final Summary of All Answers:
| Q# | Answer |
|----|--------|
| 8 | Adhesion |
| 9 | a, b, d |
| 10 | Meniscus |
| 11 | a, b |
| 12 | Cohesion and adhesion work together to pull water upward against gravity. |
| 13 | Solution; Solvent |
| 14 | Polarity |
| 15 | a, c |
| 16 | Hydrophobic |
| 17 | Specific Heat |
| 18 | True |
| 19 | a, c |
| 20 | Helps maintain stable body temperature / homeostasis |
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Let me know if you’d like a printable version or flashcards for review! 🧪💧
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8. The tendency for water molecules to be attracted and stick to other substances is called ___
✔ Answer: Adhesion
🔹 *Explanation:*
Adhesion is the attraction between water molecules and *other* substances (like glass, plant cell walls, or your skin). This contrasts with cohesion, which is the attraction *between water molecules themselves*.
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9. Circle the letter of each sentence that is true about water’s surface tension.
✔ Correct answers: a, b, d
- a. It helps some insects “skate” across the surface of the water. → TRUE. Surface tension creates a “skin” strong enough to support small insects like water striders.
- b. It refers to the tightness across the surface of the water. → TRUE. Surface tension is the result of cohesive forces pulling water molecules together at the surface.
- c. It is caused by polar molecules repelling each other. → FALSE. Water molecules are *attracted* to each other (cohesion) due to hydrogen bonding — not repelling.
- d. It causes raindrops to form round beads. → TRUE. Surface tension minimizes surface area, leading to spherical shapes.
---
10. What is a curved surface in a graduated cylinder called? A ___
✔ Answer: Meniscus
🔹 *Explanation:*
Due to adhesion between water and glass, water curves upward at the edges in a graduated cylinder, forming a concave meniscus. You read the volume at the bottom of the curve.
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11. Circle the letter of each sentence that is true about capillary action.
✔ Correct answers: a, b
- a. It explains how water moves against the force of gravity. → TRUE. Capillary action allows water to climb up narrow tubes or plant xylem without external force.
- b. It is due to the attraction among molecules of water and surrounding materials. → TRUE. Combines cohesion (water-water) and adhesion (water-material).
- c. It prevents water from moving through materials with pores. → FALSE. Actually, it *helps* water move through porous materials like soil or paper towels.
- d. It causes clothing to dry. → FALSE. Drying is due to evaporation, not capillary action.
---
12. How does capillary action allow water to climb up the sides of a straw?
✔ Answer:
*The combined force of attraction among water molecules (cohesion) and between water molecules and the straw’s material (adhesion) causes the liquid to climb upward against gravity.*
🔹 *Explanation:*
In a narrow tube (like a straw), adhesion pulls water up the sides, and cohesion pulls the rest of the water along with it — creating a column that rises until gravity balances the forces.
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13. A mixture that forms when one substance dissolves another is called a(n) ___. The substance that does the dissolving is called a(n) ___.
✔ Answers:
- First blank: Solution
- Second blank: Solvent
🔹 *Explanation:*
A solution = homogeneous mixture of two or more substances.
The solvent = substance doing the dissolving (usually water in aqueous solutions).
The solute = substance being dissolved.
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14. Why can water dissolve many substances?
✔ Answer: Polarity
🔹 *Explanation:*
Water is a polar molecule — it has a partial negative charge on oxygen and partial positive charges on hydrogens. This allows it to surround and pull apart ionic compounds (like salt) and other polar molecules, dissolving them effectively. “Like dissolves like.”
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15. Circle the letter of each substance that dissolves in water.
✔ Correct answers: a (salt), c (oxygen)
- a. Salt → TRUE. Ionic compound; dissolves readily in water.
- b. Oil → FALSE. Nonpolar; doesn’t dissolve in water (hydrophobic).
- c. Oxygen → TRUE. Small nonpolar gas; slightly soluble in water (enough for fish to breathe!).
- d. Wax → FALSE. Nonpolar; insoluble in water.
> ⚠️ Note: While oxygen is only *slightly* soluble, it *does* dissolve — so it’s correct to circle it. Oil and wax do not.
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16. A substance that hates, or “fears” water is called ___
✔ Answer: Hydrophobic
🔹 *Explanation:*
“Hydro-” = water, “-phobic” = fearing. Hydrophobic substances (like oils, fats) do not mix with water.
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17. The amount of heat needed to increase the temperature of a certain mass of a substance by 1°C is its ___
✔ Answer: Specific Heat
🔹 *Explanation:*
Specific heat capacity is the amount of energy (in calories or joules) required to raise 1 gram of a substance by 1°C. Water’s high specific heat (4.184 J/g°C) means it resists temperature change.
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18. True or False? Compared with other substances, water requires a lot of heat to increase its temperature.
✔ Answer: True
🔹 *Explanation:*
Yes — water has a very high specific heat compared to most common substances. That’s why oceans moderate coastal climates and why sweating cools us efficiently.
---
19. Circle the letter of each sentence that is true about water’s specific heat.
✔ Correct answers: a, c
- a. It is due to the many attractions among water molecules. → TRUE. Hydrogen bonds absorb a lot of energy before breaking, requiring more heat to raise temperature.
- b. It makes large bodies of water heat up more quickly than nearby land. → FALSE. Water heats *more slowly* than land.
- c. It makes large bodies of water cool off more slowly than nearby land. → TRUE. Water retains heat longer — important for climate moderation.
- d. It leads to warmer air over land than over water on summer days. → FALSE. Land heats faster → air over land is warmer in summer. But this is not *caused* by water’s specific heat — rather, it’s a *result* of land having lower specific heat.
> ✔ So only a and c are directly and correctly tied to water’s specific heat.
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20. How does the high specific heat of water affect your body?
✔ Answer:
*It allows your body to maintain a constant internal environment (homeostasis) by resisting rapid temperature changes, even when external temperatures fluctuate.*
🔹 *Explanation:*
Since your body is ~60% water, its high specific heat buffers you against sudden temperature swings. For example, during exercise, water absorbs excess heat without a huge rise in body temp — helping prevent overheating.
---
## ✔ Final Summary of All Answers:
| Q# | Answer |
|----|--------|
| 8 | Adhesion |
| 9 | a, b, d |
| 10 | Meniscus |
| 11 | a, b |
| 12 | Cohesion and adhesion work together to pull water upward against gravity. |
| 13 | Solution; Solvent |
| 14 | Polarity |
| 15 | a, c |
| 16 | Hydrophobic |
| 17 | Specific Heat |
| 18 | True |
| 19 | a, c |
| 20 | Helps maintain stable body temperature / homeostasis |
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Let me know if you’d like a printable version or flashcards for review! 🧪💧
Parent Tip: Review the logic above to help your child master the concept of water properties worksheet.
