Which of the following orders is true regarding the acidic nature of phenol?

Options

A. `"Phenol" gt "o-cresol" gt o-"nitrophenol"`
B. `"o-cresol" lt "Phenol" lt o-"nitrophenol"`
C. `"Phenol" lt "o-cresol" gt o-"nitrophenol"`
D. `"Phenol" lt "o-cresol" lt o-"nitrophenol"`

Answer

B

Explanation

0-Cresol is less acidic than phenol due to stronger + I effect of methyl group while 0-nitrophenol is more acidic than phenol due to -I effect of `-NO_(2)` group. So, the correct order of acidic nature will be:
`o-Cresol lt Phenol lt 0-Nitrophenol`