When we say a conformer or compound is of "higher energy" than another, are we quantifying energy in terms of the bond strength? Or are we going off of how much energy it takes to break the bond? I don't think we can just assign energies to each compound... so what is this based off of?
One might answer that its based off of stability. Well, what is "Stability?" Is it how rigid/strong the bonds are? Is it how reactive the compound is?
Often times i find myself reading explanations with circular language on this topic. A higher energy conformer means lower stability or A stable compound is one that has low energy. I'm finding these definitions to be crazy ambiguous, and don't thoroughly define what these are.
If someone can clearly explain this in terms that a first year undergraduate student can understand, you have earned my gratitude.
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