Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Verified for the 2026 exam
Verified for the 2026 exam•Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Definition
Chemical bonds are the attractive forces that hold atoms together in compounds. They involve the sharing or transfer of electrons to achieve stability.
Related terms
Ionic Bond: This is a type of chemical bond where one atom gives up one or more electrons to another atom, creating ions which attract each other due to their opposite charges.
Hydrogen Bond: A weak type of chemical bond that occurs when a hydrogen atom bonded to an electronegative atom forms an electrostatic connection with another electronegative atom.
A type of covalent bond where electrons are unevenly distributed, causing one part of the molecule to be slightly negative and the other part slightly positive.