Thus, by its broad definition, detergent is an umbrella term that includes soaps and other cleaning agents with various chemical compositions. Often, however, the term detergent is used in a narrower sense to refer to synthetic cleaning agents that are not soaps (that is, not salts of fatty acids). Conversely, the term soap is often used in a broader sense to include a variety of cleaning agents (such as "laundry soap"). Here, the term detergent will...