the hexagonal ring of bonded carbon atoms in the benzene molecule or its derivatives
Also called: benzene nucleus. See also Kekulé formula
benzene ring in American English
a structural unit in the molecules of aromatic organic compounds, represented by a ring of six atoms of carbon with alternate double bonds between the carbon atoms: in the molecule of benzene six atoms of hydrogen are attached to the ring, one to each atom of carbon, but in derivatives of benzene one or moreatoms of hydrogen are replaced by atoms of other elements or by groups of atoms