Shiny (Lustrous)

Metals have a shiny surface when you clean or polish them. This shine is called metallic luster. For example, gold and silver shine brightly.

2. Solid at Room Temperature

Most metals are hard and solid when you touch them at normal temperatures. Only one metal, mercury, is different—it’s a liquid!

3. High Melting and Boiling Points

Metals don’t melt or boil easily. You need very high heat to melt them. For example, iron melts at more than 1,500°C!

4.Hard and Stron

Metals don’t break easily and can take a lot of force. But not all metals are the same— Iron is very strong, but sodium is so soft, you can cut it with a knife.

5. Good Conductors of Heat and Electricity

Metals allow heat and electricity to move through them quickly. That’s why cooking pans are made of aluminum or copper. And why electric wires are made of copper.

6. Malleable (Can be hammered into sheets)

You can beat metals with a hammer to turn them into thin sheets. They don’t break when you do that. Aluminum foil is a great example.

7. Ductile (Can be stretched into wires)

Metals can be pulled and stretched into long wires without snapping. That’s how copper wires are made for homes and machines.

8. High Density (Feels heavy)

Most metals feel heavy for their size. This is because their particles are packed tightly together. Lead is a very dense and heavy metal.

9. Sonorous (Makes ringing sound)

If you hit a metal object, like a steel rod or bell,you’ll hear a ringing or clanging sound. That’s why bells are made of metal.

10. Reacts with Oxygen

Metals can combine with oxygen in the air to form a new substance called metal oxide. Iron reacts this way and forms rust when it touches air and water.

11. Reacts with Water

Some metals like sodium and potassium react quickly with water. They make a gas called hydrogen and a substance called metal hydroxide. Other metals like gold don’t react at all.

12. Reacts with Acids

Metals react with acids to produce salt and hydrogen gas.

For example:

Zinc + hydrochloric acid → zinc chloride + hydrogen gas

13. Loses Electrons Easily

In chemistry, metals give away electrons during reactions. This makes them positive ions and is part of how they form compounds.

14. Can Form Alloys

Metals can be mixed with other metals or elements to make alloys. Alloys are stronger, don’t rust easily, or have better uses. Example:

Steel = iron + carbon,

Bronze = copper + tin

15. Can Rust or Corrode

Some metals, like iron, can rust when exposed to air and water. But some, like gold and platinum, don’t rust at all. Rust makes metals weaker.

16. Magnetic (Only a Few Metals)

Only some metals stick to magnets or become magnets themselves. Iron, nickel, and cobalt are the main magnetic metals.