Amphoteric

Real World Example

Imagine having a versatile piece of clothing, like a jacket, that you can wear both in warm and cold weather by simply flipping it inside out. Just as this jacket adapts to different weather conditions, an amphoteric substance can adjust its behavior depending on the environment it encounters, acting as either an acid or a base. In this analogy, the jacket represents the amphoteric substance, while the changing weather conditions symbolize the different chemical environments that determine whether the substance will behave like an acid or a base.