The phenoxide ion is a negatively charged ion formed when a phenol molecule loses a proton H+ from its hydroxyl group -OH . The resulting ion has a negative charge on the oxygen atom. The phenoxide ion has a resonance structure that helps to stabilize it.In the phenoxide ion, the negative charge on the oxygen atom can be delocalized through resonance. This means that the negative charge can be spread out over multiple atoms in the molecule, rather than being localized on just one atom. The resonance structures involve the movement of the lone pair electrons on the oxygen atom and the pi electrons in the benzene ring.Here are the resonance structures for the phenoxide ion:1. The negative charge is on the oxygen atom, and the benzene ring has its regular alternating double and single bonds.2. The negative charge moves from the oxygen atom to form a double bond with the adjacent carbon atom in the ring. This pushes the pi electrons in the double bond to the next carbon atom, creating a negative charge on that carbon.3. The negative charge on the carbon atom moves to form a double bond with the adjacent carbon atom, pushing the pi electrons to the next carbon atom, and so on.This process continues around the benzene ring, resulting in multiple resonance structures where the negative charge is distributed across the oxygen atom and several carbon atoms in the ring. The actual structure of the phenoxide ion is a hybrid of these resonance structures.The resonance stabilization of the phenoxide ion is significant because it lowers the overall energy of the ion, making it more stable than if the negative charge were localized on a single atom. This increased stability is one of the reasons why phenols are more acidic than simple alcohols, as they more readily lose a proton to form the stabilized phenoxide ion.