paucity (n.) late 14c., from Old French paucitÃ© (14c.) and directly from Latin paucitatem (nominative paucitas) fewness, scarcity, a small number, from paucus few, little, from PIE *pau-ko-, suffixed form of root *pau-(1) few, little (source also of few (adj.)).
All three molecules have four pairs of electrons around their central atom. As a result, they all have a tetrahedral arrangment of electron pairs around the central atom. The bond angle in methane, CH4, is the tetrahedral angle, i.e. 109.5 (109 28'). Ammonia, NH3, contains a lone pair of electrons, which repels the bonding electrons to give a bond angle of 107. The atoms have a trigonal pyramidal arrangement.
The molecular geometry can be described by the positions of these atoms in space, evoking bond lengths of two joined atoms, bond angles of three connected atoms, and torsion angles (dihedral angles) of three consecutive bonds. The influence of thermal excitation