What type of bond is formed when electrons are shared between atoms?

A bond formed when electrons are shared between atoms is known as a covalent bond. In covalent bonding, two or more non-metal atoms come together to achieve a more stable electronic configuration by sharing pairs of electrons. This sharing allows each atom to attain a full outer shell of electrons, which is crucial for stability in many chemical compounds.

For example, in a water molecule (H2O), each hydrogen atom shares its single electron with the oxygen atom, allowing oxygen to complete its outer shell and achieve stability. Covalent bonds can vary in strength and number, leading to the formation of single, double, or even triple bonds depending on the number of shared electron pairs between the atoms.

This sharing contrasts with ionic bonds, where electrons are transferred from one atom to another, resulting in charged ions that attract each other. Metallic bonds involve the sharing of free electrons among a lattice of metal atoms, while hydrogen bonds are relatively weak interactions that occur between a hydrogen atom covalently bonded to a more electronegative atom and another electronegative atom. Therefore, the key characteristic of a covalent bond is the sharing of electrons, which is fundamental to the formation of a wide variety of molecules and compounds in chemistry.