Which property enables a metal to resist strain when a stress is applied?

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Strength governs how much load a metal can bear before it begins to deform permanently or fail, so it’s the property that enables a metal to resist strain when stress is applied. The stronger the metal, the more it resists deformation under the same stress, maintaining its shape and integrity up to higher loads. Elasticity, by contrast, is about deformations that are reversible when the load is removed; plasticity is permanent deformation; hardness is resistance to surface indentation rather than overall deformation under load.