MOLECULAR POLARITYFIELD NOTE 118 / 175
Is HCl polar or nonpolar?
HCl is polar because chlorine pulls bonding electrons more strongly than hydrogen across their single bond.
Hydrogen Chloride · linear
The molecule in space
Drag to turn the molecule. A two-atom molecule has no bond angle.
01 / MODEL RECORDPubChem 3D coordinates. Atom sizes and bond thickness are illustrative.How model data is used ↗
Why HCl is polar
In hydrogen chloride, chlorine (3.16) is more electronegative than hydrogen (2.20), pulling the shared electrons toward itself.
What to notice
The H–Cl bond itself is the whole molecular geometry. A 'central atom' or molecular bond angle is not applicable to HCl.
Common questions about HCl
- 01
What does the Lewis structure of HCl show?
H and Cl share one bond. Cl has three lone pairs and H has none.
- 02
What is the molecular geometry of HCl?
HCl is a two-atom molecule, so its geometry is linear. A bond angle needs three atoms and is not defined here.
- 03
What is the molar mass of HCl?
HCl has an approximate molar mass of 36.46 g/mol, calculated from its formula using abridged standard atomic weights. Natural isotope variation can change the last digits.