Electric charge is defined as:

• A. The property that measures the number of electrons passing through a point, measured in Coulombs (C).
• B. The flow of electric charge through matter.
• C. The energy used by a device per second.
• D. The potential difference between two charges.

Answer: (A)

Electric charge is a property of matter that determines how it experiences electrical forces and interacts with other charges. It comes in positive and negative forms, and the amount of charge a body has is measured in Coulombs. The idea behind the statement is that charge is related to how many charged particles—like electrons or protons—are present, since each charged particle contributes a fixed amount of charge and more charged particles mean more total charge. The unit Coulombs makes sense here because it quantifies that total amount of charge.

However, it’s good to keep in mind a subtle distinction: the phrase “passing through a point” describes current—the flow of charge per unit time—whereas charge itself is the amount of charge accumulated or present, not the flow. The other terms describe different concepts entirely: current is the flow of charge, power is energy per second, and voltage is the potential difference. So the idea that charge is a property quantified in Coulombs and tied to the amount of charged matter best captures what charge is.