How does electronegativity work?
1 Answer
Jan 5, 2016
I think of electronegativity as an atom's ability to "hog" electrons within a bond.
Explanation:
Remember that electrons are ALWAYS moving, even if they are in a bond.
If an atom has a higher electronegativity than whatever it is bonded to, then it will hog the electrons in that bond more strongly. This creates a slightly negative charge because the electrons will spend most of their time around the more electronegative atom.