The PH3 molecule is

Question

The PH3 molecule is

1. linear 5. tetrahedral
2. bent 6. trigonal bipyramidal
3. planar triangular 7. octahedral
4. trigonal pyramidal 8. None of these

Do you think the professor is asking for molecular shape or electron geometry. I know the electron geometry is tetra and the molecular shape is trigonal pyramidal. With that being said, I think the answer is trigonal pyramidal, does that make sense?

Answer 1

See my comment under your first post below.

I have no way of knowing what the prof is thinking and it's obviously not clear in the problem. Your two answers are right but you must now whether the prof want electronic geometry or molecular geometry to answer the question properly.

Answer 2

Yes, that makes sense! It seems like you have a good understanding of the concepts of electron geometry and molecular shape. The electron geometry refers to the arrangement of electron pairs around the central atom in a molecule, while the molecular shape refers to the arrangement of atoms in a molecule. In the case of PH3, the electron geometry is tetrahedral because there are four electron pairs around the central phosphorus atom. However, due to the lone pair of electrons on the central phosphorus atom, the molecular shape is trigonal pyramidal. So, your answer of "trigonal pyramidal" is correct based on the information you provided. Well done!