Editing Conjugate (acid-base theory) (section)

==Acid–base reactions==
In an [[acid–base reaction]], an acid and a base react to form a conjugate base and a conjugate acid respectively. The acid loses a proton and the base gains a proton. In diagrams which indicate this, the new bond formed between the base and the proton is shown by an arrow that starts on an [[electron pair]] from the base and ends at the hydrogen ion (proton) that will be transferred:[[File:Conjugate base reaction.svg]]

In this case, the water molecule is the conjugate acid of the basic hydroxide ion after the latter received the hydrogen ion from [[ammonium]]. On the other hand, [[ammonia]] is the conjugate base for the acidic ammonium after ammonium has donated a hydrogen ion to produce the water molecule.  Also, OH<sup>−</sup> can be considered as the conjugate base of {{Chem|H|2|O}}, since the water molecule donates a proton to give {{Chem|NH|4|+}} in the reverse reaction. The terms "acid", "base", "conjugate acid", and "conjugate base" are not fixed for a certain chemical substance but can be swapped if the reaction taking place is reversed.{{cn|date=May 2025}}