The quality of having two chemical bonds or combining powers; the ability to form exactly two connections with other atoms.
From Latin 'bi-' (two) + 'valency' (strength/worth), from 'valere' (to be strong/matter). The term developed in chemistry during the 19th century to describe atomic bonding properties.
Oxygen has a bivalency of 2—it always grabs exactly two electrons from other atoms, which is why water is H₂O and not H₃O or H-O. This predictable behavior lets chemists build molecules like architects design buildings!
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