SO₂ is polar. Although the oxygen and sulphur atoms are both highly electronegative, oxygen is more electronegative than sulphur. So, the oxygen-sulfur bonds are slightly polar because the oxygen exerts more control over the covalent bond's electrons.However, the molecules are necessarily not polar only because there are polar bonds present in them. These polar bonds make SO₂ polar because the molecule is also bent, same to H₂O, and is positioned with sulphur in the middle. Therefore, the molecule is not symmetrical entirely. The side with both oxygen atoms pointing toward is partially negative. The side with a sulfur atom has a partial positive charge, causing the molecule to have polarity.