Which reactions are characteristic of alkanes?

Question

Alkanes undergo:

Answer choices

1. Substitution.
2. Addition.
3. Hydrogenation.
4. Polymerisation.

Explanation

Alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons with single bonds. A characteristic example is radical substitution of a hydrogen atom by a halogen:

CH₄ + Cl₂ → CH₃Cl + HCl, in the presence of light.

At school level, addition and hydrogenation are mainly associated with compounds containing multiple bonds. Among these choices, select substitution.