sugar

[shoog-er]

noun

1. a sweet, crystalline substance, C 1 2 H 2 2 O 1 1 , obtained chiefly from the juice of the sugarcane and the sugar beet, and present in sorghum, maple sap, etc.: used extensively as an ingredient and flavoring of certain foods and as a fermenting agent in the manufacture of certain alcoholic beverages; sucrose.

2. Chemistry.,  a member of the same class of carbohydrates, as lactose, glucose, or fructose.

3. (sometimes initial capital letter),  an affectionate or familiar term of address, as to a child or a romantic partner (sometimes offensive when used to strangers, casual acquaintances, subordinates, etc., especially by a male to a female).

4. a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter S.

5. Slang.,  money.

6. Slang.,  LSD

verb (used with object)

1. to cover, sprinkle, mix, or sweeten with sugar.

2. to make agreeable.

verb (used without object)

1. to form sugar or sugar crystals.

2. to make maple sugar.

verb phrase

1. sugar off,  (in making maple sugar) to complete the boiling down of the syrup in preparation for granulation.

Sugar

¹

/ ˈʃʊɡə /

noun

1. Alan ( Michael ). Baron. born 1947, British electronics entrepreneur; chairman of Amstrad (1968–2008); noted for his BBC series The Apprentice (from 2005)

sugar

²

/ ˈʃʊɡə /

noun

1. Also called: sucrose.  saccharose. a white crystalline sweet carbohydrate, a disaccharide, found in many plants and extracted from sugar cane and sugar beet: it is used esp as a sweetening agent in food and drinks. Formula: C 12 H 22 O 11

2. any of a class of simple water-soluble carbohydrates, such as sucrose, lactose, and fructose

3. informal,  a term of affection, esp for one's sweetheart

4. rare,  a slang word for money

5. a slang name for LSD

verb

1. (tr) to add sugar to; make sweet

2. (tr) to cover or sprinkle with sugar

3. (intr) to produce sugar

4. to make something unpleasant more agreeable by adding something pleasant

   the government stopped wage increases but sugared the pill by reducing taxes

sugar

1. Any of a class of crystalline carbohydrates that are water-soluble, have a characteristic sweet taste, and are universally present in animals and plants. They are characterized by the many OH groups they contain. Sugars are monosaccharides or small oligosaccharides, and include sucrose, glucose, and lactose.

Other Word Forms

• sugar-like adjective
• sugarless adjective
• sugarlike adjective
• nonsugar noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of sugar¹

1250–1300; Middle English sugre, sucre (noun) < Middle French sucre < Medieval Latin succārum < Italian zucchero < Arabic sukkar; obscurely akin to Persian shakar, Greek sákcharon ( sacchar- )

Word History and Origins

Origin of sugar¹

C13 suker, from Old French çucre, from Medieval Latin zuccārum, from Italian zucchero, from Arabic sukkar, from Persian shakar, from Sanskrit śarkarā

Example Sentences

By the end of the night, I had already enjoyed a handful of candies, coming off a sugar and sour high, unbeknownst to my mother.

From Salon

As increased quantities of sugar and salt crept into diets in the rest of the world, Japan went in the other direction - with public health messaging successfully convincing people to reduce their salt consumption.

From BBC

But many traditional diets are being displaced by ultra-processed foods, often high in sugar, starch, salt, unhealthy fats and additives.

From BBC

Rolls of razor wire now run through the middle of the village Cambodia calls Chouk Chey, and on through fields of sugar cane.

From BBC

The US is the fourth-largest market for the country's biggest export, sugar.

From BBC

Related Words

• carbohydrate