Question

How do you know which element the little number (subscript) goes with?

Answer 1

Answer:

you will not

Explanation:

the little subscript number just indicates how many of a certain atom is in a molecule... example H₂O... that little ₂ means that there are 2 hydrogen atoms in the water molecule.

there is an invisible ₁ on the O as well. H₂O₁ shows there is one oxygen atom in the water molecule, but we do not show the 1

Answer 2

Answer:

The little number you see to the right of the symbol for an element is called a subscript. That number indicates the number of atoms of that element present in the compound. When balancing an equation, you can change the coefficients but not the subscripts.