What term describes an electrically neutral molecule formed by covalent bonds between atoms that have the same or similar electronegativity?

What term describes an electrically neutral molecule formed by covalent bonds between atoms that have the same or similar electronegativity?

• A. Ionic bond
• B. Covalent bond
• C. Polar
• D. Nonpolar

Answer: (D)

The important idea is that polarity depends on how evenly electrons are shared between atoms. When atoms have the same or very similar electronegativity, the shared electrons spend nearly equal time around each atom, so there’s no region of partial charge and no dipole moment. That means the molecule is electrically neutral and nonpolar. In this situation, the covalent bonds created don’t create an overall electrical imbalance, which is exactly what defines a nonpolar molecule. If electronegativity differed more, sharing would be unequal and the molecule could become polar, while full electron transfer would lead to ionic bonds and charged species.

The important idea is that polarity depends on how evenly electrons are shared between atoms. When atoms have the same or very similar electronegativity, the shared electrons spend nearly equal time around each atom, so there’s no region of partial charge and no dipole moment. That means the molecule is electrically neutral and nonpolar. In this situation, the covalent bonds created don’t create an overall electrical imbalance, which is exactly what defines a nonpolar molecule. If electronegativity differed more, sharing would be unequal and the molecule could become polar, while full electron transfer would lead to ionic bonds and charged species.