Ohio Assessments for Educators (OAE) Middle Grades Science (OAE 029)

The bond characterized by the transfer of one or more electrons from one atom to another is the ionic bond. In ionic bonding, one atom donates electrons, becoming a positively charged ion, while another atom accepts those electrons, becoming a negatively charged ion. This transfer of electrons typically occurs between elements with significantly different electronegativities, such as metals and nonmetals. The resulting electrostatic attraction between the oppositely charged ions forms the ionic bond.

Covalent bonds, in contrast, involve the sharing of electrons between atoms rather than transferring them, which distinguishes them from ionic bonds. Metallic bonds involve the pooling and delocalization of electrons among a lattice of metal atoms, leading to shared electron clouds but not a transfer from one atom to another. Network bonds typically describe a structure where atoms are interconnected through covalent bonds in a continuous network, rather than a straightforward transfer of electrons.