In GCSE Chemistry, a 'state symbol' is a letter in brackets that is used after a chemical formula to show the physical state of a substance in a reaction. There are four common state symbols: (s) stands for solid, (l) for liquid, (g) for gas, and (aq) for aqueous, which means the substance is dissolved in water. These symbols help you understand how substances appear and behave during chemical reactions, which is important for predicting how a reaction will proceed. For instance, when water is a liquid, it may be written as H₂O (l) in a chemical equation.
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