What describes a solute in the context of a liquid solution?

A solute is defined as a substance that dissolves in a solvent to form a solution. In a typical liquid solution, the solute is present in a smaller amount compared to the solvent, which is the substance that does the dissolving and is usually present in larger quantities. For instance, when table salt (the solute) is added to water (the solvent), the salt dissolves to form a saline solution. This process relies on the interactions at the molecular level, where the solute particles are surrounded and separated by solvent molecules, leading to a homogeneous mixture. This concept is fundamental in understanding how solutions form and how they can behave differently based on the properties of both the solute and the solvent.