Tenacity
It is easier to pull asunder a bar of lead than a bar of steel of equal dimensions. This proves that the molecules of some solids cohere more strongly than others. A solid is said to be ruptured when it is thus forcibly pulled asunder, and the power that resists this rupture is called tenacity. If we find how much force is required to pull asunder rods of different solids having equal dimensions, we can then determine their relative tenacity. Tenacity is also that quality of cohesiveness in bodies that causes them to adhere to other bodies, as glutinous, stickiness, etc. See COHESION; ADHESION; STRENGTH OF MATERIALS; METALS.