A-Level Chemistry: Bonding and Shapes

Bonding and structure questions reward precision: the difference between 107° and 104.5°, between a permanent dipole and an induced one, between what melts NaCl and what boils HF. This quiz tests that precision across the whole bonding topic.

The bonding-type questions cover ionic, covalent and metallic bonding through the properties each produces — the electrostatic lattice behind ionic melting points, the delocalised electron sea behind metallic conductivity — plus the coordinate (dative covalent) bond, defined exactly: both shared electrons originating from one atom.

Shape questions apply electron-pair repulsion theory the way exams do: NH₃ and PH₃ as the pyramidal pair predicted at 107°, SF₆ octahedral at 90°, BF₃ trigonal planar at 120°, with lone-pair compression of bond angles tested as the underlying principle rather than a memorised list.

The intermolecular forces cluster is the analytical heart of the set: which molecules are polar (asymmetry plus electronegativity difference — both required, and tested as a pair), why HF boils far above HCl (hydrogen bonding versus dipole-dipole), and the universal induced-dipole forces whose strength scales with electron count. These are exactly the explain-the-boiling-point questions that appear on every paper.

Every explanation names the principle at work and rules out the tempting confusions — polarity without asymmetry, hydrogen bonding claimed for molecules without N, O or F. The set pairs naturally with the Periodicity quiz in this collection, where the same structural reasoning explains melting-point trends across Period 3.

• Distinguish ionic, covalent, metallic and coordinate bonding by definition and properties
• Predict molecular shapes and bond angles with electron-pair repulsion theory
• Determine molecular polarity from electronegativity and symmetry together
• Rank intermolecular forces and use them to explain boiling points
• Identify when hydrogen bonding genuinely applies

Aligned to the bonding core of the DfE A level science subject content: bonding types, electron-pair repulsion and molecular geometry, electronegativity and polarity, and the three classes of intermolecular force.