Home › NY Regents Chemistry › Chemistry › Chemical Bonding and Molecular Geometry › A bond forms between a metal atom and a nonmetal…
A bond forms between a metal atom and a nonmetal atom. What character does that bond usually have?
AIonic character
BCovalent character
CMetallic character
DNo bond character
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. Ionic character
1. Metals give up electrons easily, while nonmetals take electrons readily.
2. That mismatch favors a transfer of electrons rather than a shared pair.
3. A transfer produces a cation and an anion held by electrostatic attraction, which is an ionic bond.
4. Two nonmetals bonded together would instead share electrons and give covalent character.
_Source: OpenStax Chemistry (CC BY 4.0), Chs 7 and 17, section 7.2 Covalent Bonding_
Related questions
An ionic formula such as Al2O3 does not tell you:For p-block elements forming cations, electrons are removed from which orbitals first?In a chlorine molecule, each chlorine atom ends up surrounded by how many electrons in totA monatomic anion typically forms when a nonmetal atom gains enough electrons to reach:The calcium ion Ca2+ is isoelectronic with which noble gas?When transition metals ionise, the electrons removed first come from the:Breaking the bonds in one mole of hydrogen molecules requires about:Most covalent compounds are poor conductors of electricity because they are: