Final answer:
Metals bond with nonmetals to form ionic compounds by transferring electrons. Sodium chloride is an example of an ionic compound formed by the bond between a metal (sodium) and a nonmetal (chlorine).
Step-by-step explanation:
Metals bond with nonmetals to form ionic compounds. Ionic bonds are formed when electrons are transferred from the metal atoms to the nonmetal atoms. The metal atoms lose electrons to become positively charged cations, while the nonmetal atoms gain those electrons to become negatively charged anions.
For example, sodium (Na) is a metal and chlorine (Cl) is a nonmetal. Sodium loses an electron to become a positively charged sodium ion (Na+), while chlorine gains that electron to become a negatively charged chloride ion (Cl-). The attraction between the oppositely charged ions forms an ionic bond in sodium chloride (NaCl), which is a common table salt.
Other examples of metals bonding with nonmetals include magnesium oxide (MgO), aluminum sulfide (Al2S3), and calcium phosphate (Ca3(PO4)2).
Learn more about Metal-nonmetal bonding