Ductility is a property of materials that describes their ability to deform under tensile stress, often characterized by the material’s ability to be stretched into a wire.
In general, metals are ductile. This means that when you apply force to them, they can be drawn out into thin wires without breaking. This quality is due to the metallic bonds that allow layers of atoms within the metal to slide over each other without breaking the overall structure.
On the other hand, nonmetals are typically not ductile. Most nonmetals, like sulfur and phosphorus, tend to be brittle, meaning they break or shatter rather than deform when force is applied. There are exceptions, like graphite, which can exhibit some ductile-like properties. However, in comparison to metals, nonmetals lack the consistent ductility that makes metals so useful for applications requiring materials that can be easily shaped and stretched.