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Element symbols – practice for Years 8–9

Sample questions on Element symbols with the right answer and a worked solution, from easy to hard. In the Pickles Academy app a child gets new questions of the same kind every time, so they can't just learn the answers by heart.

Subject
Chemistry
Year
Years 8–9
Curriculum area
Atoms and elements

Question types: Names and symbols of elements

Rule: Element symbols

A symbol has one or two letters, often from the Latin name. The first is always a capital, the second small.

H hydrogen, O oxygen, N nitrogen, C carbon, S sulfur, Na sodium, K potassium, Ca calcium, Fe iron, Cu copper, Au gold.

Example: Co is cobalt, but CO is carbon monoxide, a compound of carbon and oxygen.

Watch out: K is potassium (kalium), not calcium (Ca). Sodium is Na (natrium), not S: that is sulfur.

Sample questions

  1. Question 1 Easy

    What is the symbol of hydrogen?

    1. A) Fe
    2. B) S
    3. C) Ca
    4. D) H
    5. E) Na
    Show the solution
    Answer: D) H

    How it works: hydrogen – H.

  2. Question 2 Normal

    What is the symbol of helium?

    1. A) F
    2. B) P
    3. C) He
    4. D) Au
    5. E) H
    Show the solution
    Answer: C) He

    How it works: helium – He.

  3. Question 3 Hard

    What is the symbol of potassium?

    1. A) Mn
    2. B) Cr
    3. C) K
    4. D) Mg
    5. E) Sn
    Show the solution
    Answer: C) K

    How it works: potassium – K.

Related topics

All Chemistry topics

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