Is carbon an element or an atom?

All elements (including carbon) are exemplified by the existence of atoms which reflect an element's chemical properties. read more

The term element is used to refer to a sample of matter containing only one type of atom. When we say carbon is an element, there is no reference to the number of individual particles of carbon. However the term atom refers to the individual particles of the substance - an atom is only one particle. read more

Carbon is a noun; it represents an existing item in the world, while carbon atom indicates the use of an adjective: an atom which has the properties of the element carbon. Carbon represents a class of atoms with certain properties, sort of like a template, while carbon atoms are instances of that template. read more

A particular atom will have the same number of protons and electrons and most atoms have at least as many neutrons as protons. An element is a substance that is made entirely from one type of atom. For example, the element hydrogen is made from atoms containing just one proton and one electron. read more