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dextrin

American  
[dek-strin] / ˈdɛk strɪn /
Also dextrine

noun

Biochemistry, Chemistry.

  1. a soluble, gummy substance, formed from starch by the action of heat, acids, or ferments, occurring in various forms and having dextrorotatory properties: used chiefly as a thickening agent in printing inks and food, as a mucilage, and as a substitute for gum arabic and other natural substances.

dextrin British  
/ ˈdɛkstrɪn, -triːn, ˈdɛkstrɪn /

noun

  1. any of a group of sticky substances that are intermediate products in the conversion of starch to maltose: used as thickening agents in foods and as gums

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of dextrin

From the French word dextrine, dating back to 1825–35. See dextr-, -in 2

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Others state that dextrin, an edible carbohydrate produced from corn or potato starch, is used to make the adhesive.

From Washington Post • Jun. 12, 2020

The colorant chemicals help determine the different colors we see, and the binder — often a type of starch called dextrin — binds the fuel, oxidizer, and colorant together within the pellets.

From The Verge • Jul. 3, 2015

After amylases break down starch into smaller fragments, the brush border enzyme α-dextrinase starts working on α- dextrin, breaking off one glucose unit at a time.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013

Chemically, they contain also albumen, sugar, pectose, dextrin, fat, cellulose, mineral matters, and water, but less sugar than turnips or carrots.

From Herbal Simples Approved for Modern Uses of Cure by Fernie, William Thomas

Musculus, however, in 1860, showed that sugar and dextrin are simultaneously produced, and between the years 1872 and 1876 Cornelius O'Sullivan definitely proved that the sugar produced was maltose.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3 "Brescia" to "Bulgaria" by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.