What are ambident nucleophiles ? Explain with an example.

Explanation

The nucleophiles that are capable of donating an electron pair to the substrate through two different atoms are called ambident nucleophiles. It so happens due to presence of two nucleophilic centres that arise from resonating structures. For example, `""^(-)CN, NO_(2)^(-)` are examples of ambident nucleophiles.
`""^(Θ)C-=N harr :C= N^(Θ)`
`R-X+KCN rarr underset("Alkyl nitriles")(R-CN+KX)`
`R-X+AgCN rarr underset("Alkyl isocyanides")(R-NC+AgX)`
Similarly in case of `NO_(2)^(Θ)`

`R-X+AgNO_(2)rarr R-NO_(2)` (Nitroalkane)
`R-X+KNO_(2)rarr R-O-N=O` (Alkylnitrite)