* Electronegativity: This is the tendency of an atom to attract electrons towards itself in a chemical bond. Non-metals generally have higher electronegativity than metals.
* Gaining Electrons: When a non-metal atom bonds with a metal atom, the non-metal atom's higher electronegativity allows it to pull electrons away from the metal atom. This results in the non-metal atom gaining electrons, making it negatively charged.
* Anions: A negatively charged atom or molecule is called an anion.
Example:
In the formation of table salt (NaCl), sodium (Na) is a metal with a low electronegativity, while chlorine (Cl) is a non-metal with a high electronegativity. When they bond, chlorine pulls an electron from sodium, becoming a chloride ion (Cl-) and making sodium a sodium ion (Na+).
In short, non-metals form anions because their strong attraction for electrons causes them to gain electrons during chemical bonding.
