Compendium of Chemical Terminology

IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology

Welcome to the new interactive version of IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, informally known as the "Gold Book". On these pages you will find a new browsable, version of this publication. Start by:

  • browsing the alphabetical index (left),
  • using one of the many thematic indexes (left),
  • using the search in the navigation bar (top).
To learn more about this new interactive version see the about page (Updated July 1st, 2019).

This edition of the IUPAC Gold Book, a compendium of terms drawn from IUPAC Recommendations and Colour Books, has not been updated in several years. Each term is correct based upon the source cited in its entry. However, the term's definition may have since been superseded or may not reflect current chemical understanding. This site, launched July 2019, is the result of an update to the technical underpinnings of the Gold Book website to reflect advances in web technology. IUPAC Divisions will soon review all entries and update the content as needed. Please send any questions to goldbook@iupac.org.

Expanded Search!

Search using terms, synonyms, acronyms and abbreviations.

New Download Formats!

Download the terms in JSON and XML formats (as well as PDF and Plain views).

Usage License

The IUPAC Gold Book is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International for individual terms. If you are interested in licensing the Gold Book for commercial use, please contact the Executive Director at the IUPAC Secretariat.