Final answer:
A) Water (H2O) has the highest boiling point among the given compounds due to the strong hydrogen bonding between its molecules, which significantly increases its boiling point compared to the others, which rely on weaker intermolecular forces.
Step-by-step explanation:
The compound with the highest boiling point among H2O, H2S, H2Se, and H2Te is H2O (water). This is attributed to the phenomenon of hydrogen bonding, which occurs significantly in water due to the presence of hydrogen atoms bonded to a highly electronegative oxygen atom. Water's ability to form an extensive network of hydrogen bonds gives it a much higher boiling point than would be predicted solely on the basis of its molar mass.
Other molecules like H2S, H2Se, and H2Te primarily experience weaker London dispersion forces and perhaps some dipole-dipole interactions (due to the presence of hydrogen bonded to less electronegative atoms compared to oxygen), but they don't exhibit the strong hydrogen bonding observed in water, leading to lower boiling points.