Describe and explain the shape and bond angle of ammonia

So firstly, we need to work out the basic shape of the molecule which we can do by drawing the lewis structure (dot and cross diagram) and counting the number of charge clouds around the central atom. In the case of ammonia there are 4 charge clouds (3 bonding pairs and 1 lone pair) so the basic shape of ammonia is tetrahedral and the bond angle is 109.5 degrees.
However, as you can see there are 3 bonding pairs (nitrogen bonded to hydrogen) and one lone pair of electrons (unpaired electrons on the nitrogen). The lone pairs distort the shape of the molecule because they're closer to the nitrogen and therefore repel more than bonding pairs of electrons. So the bonding pairs of electrons are pushed as far apart as possible in order to minimise repulsion. Therefore, the actual shape is trigonal pyramidal with a bond angle of 107 degrees.

Answered by Chemistry tutor

46069 Views

See similar Chemistry A Level tutors

Related Chemistry A Level answers

All answers ▸

Magnesium is in Group 2 of the Periodic Table. It has a number of naturally occurring isotopes, including 24Mg and 26Mg. (a) (i) Explain, in terms of the subatomic particles in the atoms, why 24Mg and 26Mg are isotopes.


Explain the bonding and thus the properties of a carbon allotrope


Why do I have to learn about electron shells.


How does aromatic electrophilic substitution work?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning