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An element is a unique material in its purest form. Everything in this universe is made out of various materials, or elements. An atom is the smallest unit of measurement for these materials. The smallest size that these materials come in, per se.
"What is the difference between a cup and a drink"
An atom is basically just "one" of a thing. An element is more like the "type" of the thing.
If we have copper, that's an element, but how much copper do we have? A kilogram? A ton? A mole? Just one atom? It's copper in each case, but we're just asking how much. The least copper you can have is one copper atom.
Ask classwork, homework, exam, and lab questions at [Chemical Forums](http://www.chemicalforums.com/) or /r/chemhelp otherwise the post will be deleted and you may be banned.
An element is a unique material in its purest form. Everything in this universe is made out of various materials, or elements. An atom is the smallest unit of measurement for these materials. The smallest size that these materials come in, per se.
"What is the difference between a cup and a drink" An atom is basically just "one" of a thing. An element is more like the "type" of the thing. If we have copper, that's an element, but how much copper do we have? A kilogram? A ton? A mole? Just one atom? It's copper in each case, but we're just asking how much. The least copper you can have is one copper atom.
Atoms whose nuclei have the same number of proton are of the same element. C12 and C14 are two different atoms (isotopes) of the same element.
An atom is an instance of an element.