What is a dative covalent bond?

A dative covalent bond, or coordinate bond, is a bond where there is 1 pair of shared electrons between two atoms. The difference relative to a covalent bond is that in a dative covalent bond these electrons both come from one atom.
An example of this is the ammonium ion, NH4+. One of the single bonds between the nitrogen and hydrogen will be a dative covalent bond.
Dative covalent bonds have the exact same orbital shapes and repulsion as normal covalent bonds. Ammonium, like methane, would therefore have a tetrahedral shape with bond angles of ~109.5°.
Dative covalent bonds are represented on drawings as an arrow, with it pointing towards the atom/ion that isn't donating any electrons to the dative covalent bond.

AN
Answered by Angela N. Chemistry tutor

6437 Views

See similar Chemistry A Level tutors

Related Chemistry A Level answers

All answers ▸

How are London forces (Van Der Waals) formed?


Why is there a difference in mechanism between tertiary halogenoalkanes and primary halogenoalkanes in nucleophilic substitution?


What is the trend in electronegativity of group 7?


Explain the trend in reactivity of group 2 elements with water as you go down the group.


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