Practice question · Put in order
Put the steps of drawing a Lewis structure into their correct order.
- Place any remaining electrons on the central atom
- Form multiple bonds if the central atom lacks an octet
- Connect the atoms with single bonds
- Count all valence electrons, adjusting for charge
- Complete the octets of the outer atoms
Hints
- Nothing can be placed before the total is known.
- Multiple bonds are a repair applied at the end, not a starting assumption.
Show the answer
- Count all valence electrons, adjusting for charge
- Connect the atoms with single bonds
- Complete the octets of the outer atoms
- Place any remaining electrons on the central atom
- Form multiple bonds if the central atom lacks an octet
Why
You must know the electron budget first, then build a skeleton, satisfy the outer atoms, park the remainder centrally, and only then convert lone pairs into multiple bonds to fix a short-changed centre.
Practise Lewis Structures, Formal Charge and Resonance
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