In an ammonia molecule, the nitrogen is bonded to three hydrogen atoms and also has a lone electron pair. This lone pair will repel the three hydrogens out of a planar orientation, which results in a trigonal pyramidal geometry.

Compounds with the general formula AX₃ and one lone pair will be trigonal pyramidal.

Compounds with the general formula AX₃ and no lone pairs will be trigonal planar.

Compounds with the general formula AX₄ and no lone pairs will be tetrahedral.

Compounds with the general formula AX₅ and no lone pairs will be trigonal bipyramidal.

Methane has a carbon atom attached to four hydrogen atoms. In order to be as far as possible from one another, the hydrogen atoms will orient themselves around the carbon in a tetrahedral geometry. Tetrahedral geometries have bond angles of  between each constituent.

In the water molecule, there are four electron pairs. Two of them are bonded and two of them are lone pairs. This causes the water molecule to have a tetrahedral shape (it is important to note that it is a bent tetrahedral shape due to the two lone pairs).

Generally, a central atom bound to two peripheral atoms will result in a linear shape, as exemplified by carbon dioxide. Exceptions come into play, however, with the introduction of lone pairs of electrons. These lone pairs carry a negative charge, pushing other atoms (and their negatively-charged electrons) farther away. In water, the central oxygen atom is bound to two hydrogen atoms and carries two lone pairs of electrons. As a result, the lone pairs propel the hydrogen atoms away from the linear structure, "bending" the molecule. The result is known as a bent molecular geometry, according to VSEPR theory. Any molecule in which the central atom is bound to two atoms and carries two lone pairs will result in a bent shape.

Carbon dioxide and cyanide are both linear. Ammonia is trigonal pyramidal. Methane is tetrahedral.

Hydrogen bonds are intermolecular forces between hydrogens and adjacent molecules. These adjacent molecules must contain either fluorine, oxygen, or nitrogen, the three most electronegative atoms. These electronegative atoms pull electrons away from the bonded hydrogen, giving it a small positive charge and giving themselves a slightly negative charge. When the positive hydrogen of one molecule come close to a negative charge on another, the opposite charges attract and pull the molecules close together to form a hydrogen bond. The hydrogen must be bonded to oxygen (-OH), fluorine (HF), or nitrogen (-NH) to have this charging effect.

Hydrogen bonding takes place when a hydrogen atom is attracted to a highly electronegative atom in another molecule. Hydrogen bonding takes place between hydrogen and either nitrogen, oxygen, or fluorine. Carbon has an electronegativity similar to hydrogen's, and will not hydrogen bond with hydrogens in other molecules.

Only molecules with -OH, -FH, or -NH groups can form hydrogen bonds.

Ethene is an organic molecule composed of two carbon atoms, joined by a double bond, and four hydrogen atoms.

Ethene, like all molecules, exhibits London dispersion forces. This molecule, however, has no net dipole moment, so it will not exhibit dipole-dipole attraction. Also, even though it contains hydrogens, it does not exhibit hydrogen bonding. To exhibit hydrogen bonding, the hydrogen atoms must be attached to more electronegative atoms, namely nitrogen, fluorine, or oxygen. Finally, ionic bonding is only present in ionic compounds, not organic compounds.

Intermolecular forces are transient forces between two separate molecules. Water is a polar molecule. The oxygen atom carries a slight positive charge, while the hydrogen atoms carry slight negative charges. This is the result of the large difference in electronegativity between oxygen and hydrogen. When two water molecules are next to each other, the partially positive hydrogen will be attracted to the partially negative oxygen. This attraction is known as a hydrogen bond.

Ionic bonds, covalent bonds, and double bonds are all intramolecular forces. These are stable bonds between atoms that establish the identity of the molecule. Breaking any of these bonds would alter the identity of the compound.

Hydrogen bonding occurs between a hydrogen atom on one molecule and a very electronegative atom—namely oxygen, nitrogen, or fluorine—on a neighboring molecule. This electrostatic force results in a stronger intermolecular bond than would otherwise be present without the hydrogen bond. A stronger intermolecular bond results in a higher boiling point.

Water (H₂O) exhibits hydrogen bonding between the hydrogen of one water molecule and the oxygen of another water molecule. Since sulfur is not as electronegative as oxygen, hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) does not exhibit hydrogen bonding. This is the reason why water is a liquid at room temperature, while hydrogen sulfide is a gas.

Wrong answers explained: Neither water nor hydrogen sulfide has ionic bonds. Both have covalent bonds and London dispersion force, but this does not explain why water's boiling point is higher. Heisenberg bonding does not exist and is a misleading answer option.

When hydrogen is bound to either fluorine, oxygen, or nitrogen, the hydrogen atom carries little of the electron density of the covalent bond. This partially positively charged hydrogen atom may interact with the partial negative charge located on adjacent electronegative atoms such as F, N, or O on adjacent molecules. Note that hydrogen bonds are intermolecular forces, not intramolecular. This means that hydrogen bonds form between two separate molecules. They plan an important role in the chemistry of water, and other compounds that exhibit hydrogen bonding.