What is the charge of an electron?

• A. Negative
• B. Positive
• C. No charge
• D. Double negative

Answer: (A)

Charge is a basic property that determines how a particle interacts with electric fields. The electron carries a negative charge, meaning its charge is -1 in units of the elementary charge e. This magnitude matches the positive charge of a proton but with the opposite sign, which is why electrons are attracted to positive charges and repel negative ones. This sign convention also explains atomic neutrality when electrons balance protons. The other options don’t fit: a positive charge would belong to a proton, no charge would describe a neutral particle, and a double negative would indicate twice the elementary charge, which isn’t how the electron’s charge is defined.