Transition metal charges

[305920501]

Since the Roman Numerals dictate the charge of the transition metal in a compound, and they are always positive, can transition metals only be cations? Could they ever gain electrons? If not, why not?

[Averie Moore 2F]

Transition metals only form cations because they are in the 4s orbital and gaining any electron would decrease the stability of the anion formed.

[Valeria Perez 3J]

Metal ions will typically only form cations because gaining an electron would lower the stability of the atom. They can easily lose electrons due to the corresponding s orbital of that period, but it is much more difficult for them to gain them, since they would be going to a much more unstable state.

[Valeria Morales]

They can only be cations because they lose their electrons and it would be rather unstable to gain electrons. I hope this helped.

[Ashley Peterson 2C]

Hello!
To answer your question,
While transition metals are more commonly associated with forming cations, they can also form anions under certain conditions depending on factors such as the specific chemical environment and the nature of the elements the metals are currently interacting with.Transition metals generally have the ability to lose electrons and form positive oxidation states, leading to the creation of cations. In some compounds or coordination complexes, transition metals can gain electrons and exhibit negative oxidation states to result in anion formation. Flexibility in oxidation states is a characteristic in transition metals to take note of. However, its behavior will depend on the circumstances of the given chemical reaction.
I hope this helps!