An alkoxide is the conjugate base of an alcohol and therefore consists of an organic group bonded to a negatively charged oxygen atom. They are written as RO⁻, where R is the organic substituent. Alkoxides are strong bases and, when R is not bulky, good nucleophiles and good ligands.

Why is alkoxide a strong base?

Alkoxide means RO-. R is any alkyl group. Alkyl groups are electron donating groups. ... So, As Alkoxide has now higher tendency to donate electrons as compared to normal hydroxide, so Alkoxide is a stronger base than normal hydroxide ions.

Is alkoxide a strong acid?

They are moderately strong acids, but not as commonly used in this context as hydrochloric and sulfuric acid. Note that, like sulfuric acid, they all contain polar OH groups. Sometimes, weak acids are used to protonate the alkoxide intermediate.