Question

Carbon is a metal or nonmetal?

Answer 1

Hint: Non-metals are elements in Chemistry which are unlike metals. They are soft, brittle and are poor conductors of electricity. They are non-malleable and ductile as well. They form negative ions on gaining electrons, and can form covalent bonds with metals.

Complete answer:
Carbon is a chemical element, commonly denoted as “C”. It has the atomic number $6.$ It is the first member of Group $14$ in the periodic table. This group is also called Carbon family. Carbon is known to be one of the most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust.
Carbon is a non-metal. A non-metal element in Chemistry lacks the properties and characteristics of a metal. Usually, these elements gain electrons and form negative ions. Some physical properties of non-metals are that they have low melting and boiling points. They are brittle as a solid and have poor thermal and electrical conductivity. Some chemical properties of non-metals include high electron affinity and high ionization energy. Carbon is less electronegative of the non-metals, and forms covalent compounds with metals. The most common oxidation state of Carbon is $ + 4$ .

Note:
Carbon is a very special element considering that it can form allotropes. Allotropes are those compounds which have been formed due to the bonding of Carbon in different ways. Most known allotropes of Carbon are Buckminsterfullerene, Graphite and Diamond. Another important aspect of Carbon is that they play a part in organic compounds. Organic compounds are those compounds in Chemistry that contain Carbon and Hydrogen bonds.