Which term describes a material's propensity to break with little permanent distortion?

The term that best describes a material's propensity to break with little permanent distortion is brittleness. Brittleness characterizes materials that tend to fracture or break rather than deform when subjected to stress. This means that when a brittle material is subjected to excessive force, it will break suddenly without significant deformation, unlike ductile materials, which can undergo substantial deformation before breaking.

Brittleness is an important property in materials science and engineering, as it helps determine how a material will perform under stress and its suitability for specific applications. Understanding this property is crucial for engineers when selecting materials for constructions that require the ability to withstand certain loads without failure. The other terms have distinct meanings related to material behavior under stress but do not convey the specific behavior described in the question.