This approach to understanding the chemistry of organic compounds presumes that certain atoms or groups of atoms known as functional groups give these compounds their characteristic properties.
Functional groups focus attention on the important aspects of the structure of a molecule.
Some common functional groups are given in the table below. O group plays a particularly important role in organic chemistry. This group is called a carbonyl and some of the functional groups based on a carbonyl are shown in the table below. Identify the functional groups in the structure of safrole. Identify the functional groups in each molecule.