Can someone please help me figure this out Define the terms "ionic compound" and "covalent compound". Use all of the following terms correctly in at least one of the two definitions: cation, anion, metal, nonmetal, electrons are shared, and electrons are transferred.

it means there are 3 atoms of oxygen

nacl or sodium chloride is an ionic compound. this is because an ionic compound pertains to a compound that consists of positively and negatively charged ions. in this case, na (sodium) has a tendency to lose one electron when it reacts with with other atoms, so the resulting sodium ion contains 11 protons and 10 electrons, thus making it positively charged (na+), when chlorine reacts, it usually gains one electron to form an ion called chloride, thus making it negatively charged ( since the ions are oppositely charged, they attract.