Electronegativity

Question 1

What is electronegativity?

Answer 1

The ability of an atom to attract valence electrons towards itself in a chemical bond.

Question 2

What main properties of an atom determine its electronegativity?

Answer 2

• Atomic number
• Size of the valence shell

Question 3

How does electronegativity change as you move to the right of the periodic table?

Answer 3

Electronegativity increases.

Question 4

How does electronegativity change as you move down the periodic table?

Answer 4

Electronegativity decreases.

Question 5

Why does electronegativity decrease when moving down a group in the periodic table?

Answer 5

The number of shells increases, so valence electrons are not as strongly attracted to the nucleus.

Question 6

What causes the increase in electronegativity when moving left to right across a period?

Answer 6

The effective nuclear charge increases, leading to valence electrons being more strongly attracted to the nucleus.