Question

Can someone explain polarizability to me? What's the difference between polarizability and electronegativity?

Answer 1

Electronegativity is the affinity for electrons an element has to draw electrons closer to it's nucleus. Polarizability is the distortion in the density of an electron distribution ("electron cloud") due to electron repulsion between atoms or molecules and they approach one another.

Answer 2

since electronegative atoms have a greater affinity for electrons, the distribution will be have greater electron density surrounding them, opposed to say another atom e.g. H2O, O has electrons around it more often than the H's do. This results in a dipole moment.