When hydrogen chloride donates a proton, its conjugate base is the chloride ion, __________.

### Why this is right When hydrogen chloride loses H⁺, the remaining species is chloride, Cl⁻. A conjugate base is formed by removing one proton from its acid. ### The concept Conjugate acid-base relationships can be identified by tracking a single proton. The charge changes accordingly: removing a positively charged proton makes the remaining species one charge unit more negative. ### Terms - **Chloride ion**: the negatively charged ion formed from hydrogen chloride after it loses a proton. ### Remember Acid minus H⁺ gives its conjugate base.