In other words, the basic substance furnishes a pair of electrons for a chemical bond, the acid substance accepts such a pair.
Since hydrogen is a constituent of most of our electrolytic solvents, the definition of an acid or base as a substance which gives up or takes up hydrogen ion would be more general than the one we used before, but it would not be universal.
We are inclined to think of substances as possessing acid or basic properties, without having a particular solvent in mind.
We frequently define an acid or a base as a substance whose aqueous solution gives, respectively, a higher concentration of hydrogen ion or of hydroxide ion than that furnished by pure water. This is a very one sided definition.
We may say that a basic substance is one which has a lone pair of electrons which may be used to complete the stable group of another atom, and that an acid is one which can employ a lone pair from another molecule in completing the stable group of one of its own atoms.
When we discuss aqueous solutions of substances which do not contain hydroxyl, it is simplest to define a base as a substance which adds hydrogen ion.
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