If an atom loses electrons, what happens to its electrical charge?

• A. It becomes a positively charged ion
• B. It becomes a negatively charged ion
• C. It remains electrically neutral
• D. It becomes an isotope

Answer: (A)

Losing electrons removes negative charges from around the atom while the nucleus’s positive charges stay the same. In a neutral atom those charges balance, so the atom is overall neutral. When electrons are removed, there are more protons than electrons, giving the atom a positive net charge. That positively charged particle is called a cation, an ion with a positive charge. If electrons were gained, it would become negatively charged; isotopes, on the other hand, involve changes to the number of neutrons in the nucleus, not to electron count.