In mineralogy, tenacity is a mineral's behavior when deformed or broken.
[1] The mineral may be pounded out into thin sheets.
Sectility is a form of tenacity and can be used to distinguish minerals of similar appearance.
If bent by an external force, an elastic mineral will spring back to its original shape and size when the stress, that is, the external force, is released.
If bent by an external force, a plastic mineral will not spring back to its original shape and size when the stress, that is, the external force, is released.