Lone Pairs Take Space

Ammonia, water and squeezed angles

An interactive lesson with 7 steps, about 6 minutes: you predict, drag and solve, with instant feedback on every answer. It runs in your browser and needs JavaScript.

What you’ll learn

• Shape is named from the atoms; lone pairs still take up space.
• Lone pairs squeeze bond angles: CH₄ 109.5°, NH₃ 107°, H₂O 104.5°.

Steps

1. Invisible but bulky
2. Ammonia
3. A squeezed angle
4. Water
5. Water versus carbon dioxide
6. Rank the angles
7. Sulfur dioxide