Is Antimony a Metal, Nonmetal or Metalloid?
Antimony (Sb) is a metalloid — neither a full metal nor a nonmetal — a metalloid (semi-metal): it straddles the boundary, conducting like a metal in some conditions and behaving like a nonmetal in others. It sits in group 15, period 5, and is a solid at room temperature.
Looking for Antimony's metal or nonmetal without wading through a whole chapter? Here is the direct answer first, then the tables and derivations examiners want to see. Every number on this page comes from the same engine that powers the interactive table. Need the whole picture instead — history, characteristics, uses, exam questions? The full Antimony page is one click away.
The one-line answer, with reasons
Antimony is a metalloid — neither a full metal nor a nonmetal. Chemists decide by behaviour, not appearance: metals (unlike Antimony) give up electrons, shine when freshly cut, and conduct heat and electricity; nonmetals take or share electrons and (as solids) break rather than bend. Antimony sits exactly on the border, sharing habits of both sides — placed in the metalloid family of the table.
Antimony's metal/nonmetal report card
| Property | Value | Typical of |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Metalloid | — |
| Phase at room temp | solid | varies |
| Block | p-block | — |
| Group | 15 | — |
| Period | 5 | — |
The family it belongs to
The whole metalloid family shares one seating area of the table, and every member's family ID card is one click away — compare Antimony with its upstairs or downstairs neighbour and the family pattern jumps out.
Students also ask
Is Antimony a good conductor of electricity?
Partly — as a metalloid, Antimony conducts under some conditions, which is exactly why it is useful in electronics.
Can a gas be a nonmetal — like Antimony?
Yes — being a metal or nonmetal is about bonding and electron behaviour, not state. At room temperature Antimony is a solid, and that says nothing against its nonmetallic character.