What are mineral compounds containing metals and silicon-oxygen groups known as?

Mineral compounds that consist of metals combined with silicon-oxygen groups are classified as silicates. Silicates are the most abundant group of minerals in the Earth's crust and play a significant role in geology and materials science. They are characterized by their crystalline structures that contain silicate tetrahedra (SiO₄), where each tetrahedron can bond with metal ions to form various types of silicate minerals.

Silicates can form a wide variety of structures, including isolated tetrahedra, chains, sheets, and three-dimensional frameworks, depending on how the tetrahedra are linked together. This diversity leads to a range of properties and uses for silicate minerals, from the common forms of clay to more complex structures like quartz.

Other choices like silicones refer to synthetic compounds that typically involve silicon-oxygen bonds but are not naturally occurring mineral compounds. Oxides and hydrides represent different categories of compounds that do not specifically involve silicon-oxygen groups connected with metal ions in the same way as silicates. Thus, the classification of mineral compounds containing both metals and silicon-oxygen groups is correctly identified as silicates.