See Also: electrophile(medicine)
electrophile(encyclopedia)

electrophile (sh)




Atom or molecule that in a chemical reaction seeks an atom or molecule containing an electron pair available for bonding or the negative end of a polar molecule (see covalent bond; electric dipole).

In the Lewis electron theory (see acid-base theory) advanced by the U.S. chemist Gilbert Lewis (1875-1946) in 1923, electrophiles are by definition Lewis acids. Examples include the hydronium ion (H3O+), boron trifluoride (BF3), and the halogens fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine in molecular form. See also acid; nucleophile.