Woodward-Hoffmann rules

noun

A set of three rules that invoke the conservation of orbital symmetry to predict the stereochemistry of pericyclic reactions.

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Meanings

nounWoodward-Hoffmann rules pl (plural only)
  1. pluralplural onlychemistryA set of three rules that invoke the conservation of orbital symmetry to predict the stereochemistry of pericyclic reactions.

Origin

From Robert Burns Woodward and Roald Hoffman, American chemists.

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Cite this entry
APA

Woodward-Hoffmann rules. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodward-Hoffmann%20rules

MLA

“Woodward-Hoffmann rules.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodward-Hoffmann%20rules. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Woodward-Hoffmann rules,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodward-Hoffmann%20rules.

Source: Woodward-Hoffmann rules on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.