alleryStart learning →Why is it wrong to speak of a single sodium chloride molecule?
AEach ion pairs with one partner ion only
BSodium chloride exists only as a hot vapour
CEach ion attracts all its neighbours alike
DThe bonding is covalent rather than ionic
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. Each ion attracts all its neighbours alike
1. A molecule implies a definite small group of atoms bonded to each other and not to the rest.
2. In sodium chloride the attractive forces between ions are isotropic, meaning the same in all directions.
3. So any one ion is pulled equally by every nearby ion of opposite charge, not by one chosen partner.
4. The result is a three dimensional lattice, in which no pair of ions can be singled out as a molecule.
_Source: OpenStax Chemistry (CC BY 4.0), Ch 7 "Chemical Bonding and Molecular Geometry", section The Formation of Ionic Compounds_
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