Aryl

Distinguish from aril, which is a fleshy covering of certain seeds.

In the context of organic molecules, aryl refers to any functional group or substituent derived from a simple aromatic ring. There are more specific terms, such as phenyl, to describe unsubstituted aryl groups and subsets of aryl groups (as well as arbitrarily substituted groups: see IUPAC nomenclature), but "aryl" is used for the sake of abbreviation or generalization.

The simplest aryl group is phenyl, C₆H₅; it is derived from benzene. The tolyl group, CH₃C₆H₄, is derived from toluene (methylbenzene). The xylyl group, (CH₃)₂C₆H₃, is derived from xylene (dimethylbenzene).

Biaryls may display axial chirality.

See also

*Alkyl
*Aromatic hydrocarbon
*Aromaticity
*Heterocycle