= Carbon acid
A <carbon acid> is a <chemical acid> that loses a <proton> from a carbon-hydrogen bond, producing a <carbanion> or a resonance-stabilized related species. The name refers to the atom bearing the acidic hydrogen, not to every compound containing carbon.
For example, deprotonation of <acetone> next to its carbonyl group gives an <enolate>. Delocalization of the negative charge makes this hydrogen much more acidic than an ordinary alkane hydrogen. Carbon acidity therefore explains how carbon nucleophiles arise in reactions such as the <aldol reaction>, while the actual acid strength depends strongly on substituents and solvent.
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