Which statement about covalent bonds is correct?

Which statement about covalent bonds is correct?

• A. Electrons are shared between atoms
• B. Electrons are transferred from one atom to another
• C. Electrons are created and destroyed
• D. Protons are shared

Answer: (A)

Covalent bonds form when atoms share electrons. When two atoms have similar electronegativities, neither one fully pulls electrons away, so they pair up electrons in a shared region to complete their outer shells. This shared electron cloud holds the atoms together and creates a molecule, with each atom effectively counting the shared electrons toward its valence. In contrast, transferring electrons from one atom to another describes ionic bonding, where atoms become charged ions that attract each other. The idea that electrons are created or destroyed isn’t how bonding works—electrons are conserved and merely rearranged. Protons are not shared between atoms in bonding, since the nucleus stays with its atom and bonding occurs through the electron cloud around the nuclei. So, electrons are shared between atoms—that’s the best description of covalent bonds.

Covalent bonds form when atoms share electrons. When two atoms have similar electronegativities, neither one fully pulls electrons away, so they pair up electrons in a shared region to complete their outer shells. This shared electron cloud holds the atoms together and creates a molecule, with each atom effectively counting the shared electrons toward its valence.

In contrast, transferring electrons from one atom to another describes ionic bonding, where atoms become charged ions that attract each other. The idea that electrons are created or destroyed isn’t how bonding works—electrons are conserved and merely rearranged. Protons are not shared between atoms in bonding, since the nucleus stays with its atom and bonding occurs through the electron cloud around the nuclei.

So, electrons are shared between atoms—that’s the best description of covalent bonds.