A steel tack is not a magnet. Two tacks side by side do nothing to each other. Yet hold a magnet over one, and the tack leaps up to meet it. Why does a non-magnet feel a force at all?
Unlike poles attract. The magnet's N pole and the tack's new S pole face each other, so the magnet and the tack attract.
Turn the magnet around so its S pole faces the tack, and an N pole appears on the near side instead. The pair still attract.
That is why a magnet can only ever attract a magnetic material: the pole appearing on the near side is always the opposite one.
A magnet's N pole is brought near a steel clip. Which pole appears on the clip's near side?
Why does a magnet attract a steel nail that is not a magnet?
Omar says a steel clip hanging from a magnet is itself a magnet while it hangs there. Is Omar correct?
A magnet holds a steel washer. A second washer clings beneath the first. What holds the second washer up?
Which statement explains why a magnet can attract a steel clip that is not a magnet?