eli5: Why O2 and H2 are gasses but H2O is a liquid?

Question

In the same conditions of course.

In: Chemistry

Answer 1

Well, they’re very different molecules. There’s no reason to expect O2 to act anything like singlet O or O3 because the bulk properties don’t really care what the specific element is – just what the molecule is.

In the case of H2O the very polar bonds between H and O create unbalanced electric charge, and so similarly to a bucket of magnets the molecules start to align with one another and clump together.