In ionic bonding, what happens to metal atoms during bond formation?

• A. They gain electrons to form anions
• B. They lose electrons to form cations
• C. They neither gain nor lose electrons
• D. They share electrons equally

Answer: (B)

In ionic bonding, metals tend to give up electrons because they have relatively low ionization energies, so they form positively charged ions (cations). The electrons are transferred to a nonmetal, which gains electrons to become a negatively charged ion (anion). The resulting opposite charges attract, creating the ionic bond between the ions. So the metal atoms lose electrons to form cations. The other options describe different bonding types or no transfer at all: gaining electrons would form anions (not typical for metals), neither gaining nor losing contradicts the transfer that powers ionic bonds, and sharing electrons equally describes covalent bonding rather than ionic bonding.