👤 By the CinnaEntry Content Team🕐 Updated 2026-09-06🏷️ HESI Chemistry🔖 Free to read, print, and share
Also known as: solid · liquid · gas · melting · evaporation · condensation
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Use this one-page guide to lock in States of Matter Cheat Sheet for the ATI TEAS 7 and HESI A2. Keep it handy during review and on exam day.
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📒 The 1-minute cheat sheet
📌 The Grid
SOLID — fixed shape, fixed volume
LIQUID — no fixed shape, fixed volume
GAS — no fixed shape, no fixed volume
📌 Phase Changes
Adding heat: melting → evaporation/boiling
Removing heat: condensation → freezing
Sublimation skips liquid (solid → gas), e.g. dry ice
📌 Remember
A phase change is PHYSICAL — the molecules are unchanged
Evaporation = at the surface, any temp · Boiling = throughout, at the boiling point
📚 States of Matter Cheat Sheet — full study notes
The cheat sheet above is your quick recall card. These notes go deeper — what it is, what to do first, what must be reported, and what to teach.
The three states differ only in how much energy the particles have and therefore how tightly they are held. Every phase-change term is just a named move between two states, so learning the grid is faster than learning the words separately.
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Key points
Understand these first
Solid: particles vibrate in fixed positions — definite shape AND definite volume.
Liquid: particles slide past each other — definite volume, takes the shape of its container.
Gas: particles move freely and far apart — neither definite shape nor volume.
Adding heat moves you solid → liquid → gas (melting, then evaporation/boiling). Removing heat reverses it (condensation, then freezing).
Sublimation goes straight from solid to gas, skipping liquid — dry ice is the standard example.
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Study first
Where to start
Water at 0 °C melts to liquid and at 100 °C boils to steam. Same substance, same particles — only the energy changed.
Steam on a cold mirror becomes droplets: gas losing heat condenses to liquid.
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Red flags — report now
Escalate immediately
Thinking a phase change alters the substance chemically. It is a PHYSICAL change; the molecules are unchanged.
Mixing up evaporation (surface, any temperature) with boiling (throughout, at the boiling point).
Reversing condensation and evaporation — condensation is the one that releases heat.
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Commonly tested
What comes up most
Build the grid once: for each state write shape (fixed/no) and volume (fixed/no). Two columns answer most questions.
Trace the arrows in both directions and name each; a phase-change question is always one of those arrows.
❓ States of Matter Cheat Sheet: TEAS & HESI FAQs
What should I focus on first when studying States of Matter Cheat Sheet?
Water at 0 °C melts to liquid and at 100 °C boils to steam. Same substance, same particles — only the energy changed. Steam on a cold mirror becomes droplets: gas losing heat condenses to liquid.
What are the warning signs of States of Matter Cheat Sheet a nurse must report?
Thinking a phase change alters the substance chemically. It is a PHYSICAL change; the molecules are unchanged. Mixing up evaporation (surface, any temperature) with boiling (throughout, at the boiling point). Reversing condensation and evaporation — condensation is the one that releases heat.
What do I need to know about States of Matter Cheat Sheet for the TEAS or HESI?
Solid: particles vibrate in fixed positions — definite shape AND definite volume. Liquid: particles slide past each other — definite volume, takes the shape of its container. Gas: particles move freely and far apart — neither definite shape nor volume. Adding heat moves you solid → liquid → gas (melting, then evaporation/boiling). Removing heat reverses it (condensation, then freezing).
What are the most commonly tested points on States of Matter Cheat Sheet?
Build the grid once: for each state write shape (fixed/no) and volume (fixed/no). Two columns answer most questions. Trace the arrows in both directions and name each; a phase-change question is always one of those arrows.
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Quick Tip
Solid: particles vibrate in fixed positions — definite shape AND definite volume.