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Alcohol molecules all contain the hydroxyl (-OH) functional group. They are a homologous series and have the general formula C_nH_2n+₁OH. Their names all end in -ol.

The rules for naming an alcohol are:

1. Find the longest carbon chain and name it.
2. Number the carbon atoms in the chain so that the functional group (in this case, the hydroxyl group) has the lowest possible number.
3. Identify any branches joined onto the main chain and name them.
4. Identify each branch by a number indicating its position. If more than one branch is present then a prefix must be used.

This simple alcohol molecule is called butan-2-ol.

The names, molecular and structural formulae of some straight chain alcohols are shown in the table below.

When naming branched chain alcohols, be careful to number the longest possible carbon chain first.

When writing the name, you follow the convention of using commas between numbers and dashes between numbers and words.