1
a
: a sweet crystallizable material that consists wholly or essentially of sucrose, is colorless or white when pure tending to brown when less refined, is obtained commercially from sugarcane or sugar beet and less extensively from sorghum, maples, and palms, and is important as a source of dietary carbohydrate and as a sweetener and preservative of other foods
b
: any of various water-soluble compounds that vary widely in sweetness, include the monosaccharides and oligosaccharides, and typically are optically active
2
: a unit (such as a spoonful, cube, or lump) of sugar
3
: a sugar bowl
sugared; sugaring
ˈshu̇-g(ə-)riŋ 
1
: to make palatable or attractive : sweeten
a story sugared with romance
2
: to sprinkle or mix with sugar
1
: to form or be converted into sugar
2
: to become granular
3
: to make maple syrup or maple sugar
Examples of sugar in a Sentence
Noun
Would you pass the sugar, please?
Do you take sugar in your coffee?
Coffee with two sugars and milk, please.
Verb
The clean fruit is then dried and sugared.
They've been sugaring since they were children.
Recent Examples on the Web
Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
During the fermentation process, yeast is added to the grape juice, which causes the sugar from the grapes to convert to alcohol and carbon dioxide.
—Cynthia Sass, Mph, Health, 8 Apr. 2024
For the group’s 25th anniversary, Little Big Town is pouring some sugar on it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
—Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 6 Apr. 2024
Small dishes of fresh lemon, raw sugar, and honey are the perfect finishing touches to a hot cup of tea.
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Apr. 2024
Glucose metabolism refers to how the body processes and utilizes glucose (sugar) for energy.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
The collapse is expected to affect supply chains for cars, coal and sugar, as well as warehousing and trucking operations.
—Suzanne Nuyen, NPR, 28 Mar. 2024
Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
—Melissa Clark, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Mar. 2024
Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 15 Jan. 2024
According to Cleveland Clinic of Florida, non-nutritive sweeteners (also called sugar substitutes or artificial sweeteners) contain few or no calories or nutrients and may be derived from plants or herbs, or even sugar itself.
—Caitlin Granfield, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
The soldiers stepped outside, where snow sugared the woods and wheat fields.
—Kamila Hrabchuk, Washington Post, 25 Dec. 2023
Included are a foraging knife with a folding blade, a mesh bag for collecting mushrooms and a sugaring spile for sap from birch or maple trees.
—Sarah Grossbart, wsj.com, 25 Oct. 2023
April has its charms as well, with the month marking the peak of the sugaring season (or maple syrup season), which typically runs from the end of February to early May.
—Julia Eskins, Travel + Leisure, 10 Sep. 2023
Butter and sugaring the pan make for a crunchy outer layer.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2023
Compared to waxing, sugaring is a similar technique however the mixture is applied in the opposite direction of hair growth, then pulled in the normal direction.
—India Espy-Jones, Essence, 17 Aug. 2023
Like waxing, people should avoid sugaring within six months of taking Isotrentoin, a medication for cystic acne, Tips: Before trying sugaring at home, watch several videos to understand the process.
—Heather L. Brannon, Md, Verywell Health, 22 Mar. 2023
Noun
Eclipse sugar cookies with butter cream frosting sold for $3 each and people were already lined up before noon at the Whirligig Brewing pub which had made a special ale in honor of the eclipse.
—Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
During the fermentation process, yeast is added to the grape juice, which causes the sugar from the grapes to convert to alcohol and carbon dioxide.
—Cynthia Sass, Mph, Health, 8 Apr. 2024
For the group’s 25th anniversary, Little Big Town is pouring some sugar on it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
—Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 6 Apr. 2024
Small dishes of fresh lemon, raw sugar, and honey are the perfect finishing touches to a hot cup of tea.
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Apr. 2024
Glucose metabolism refers to how the body processes and utilizes glucose (sugar) for energy.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
The collapse is expected to affect supply chains for cars, coal and sugar, as well as warehousing and trucking operations.
—Suzanne Nuyen, NPR, 28 Mar. 2024
Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
—Melissa Clark, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Mar. 2024
Verb
The two types of sugaring wax make this kit highly versatile for both fine and thick hair removal.
—Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 15 Jan. 2024
According to Cleveland Clinic of Florida, non-nutritive sweeteners (also called sugar substitutes or artificial sweeteners) contain few or no calories or nutrients and may be derived from plants or herbs, or even sugar itself.
—Caitlin Granfield, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
The soldiers stepped outside, where snow sugared the woods and wheat fields.
—Kamila Hrabchuk, Washington Post, 25 Dec. 2023
Included are a foraging knife with a folding blade, a mesh bag for collecting mushrooms and a sugaring spile for sap from birch or maple trees.
—Sarah Grossbart, wsj.com, 25 Oct. 2023
April has its charms as well, with the month marking the peak of the sugaring season (or maple syrup season), which typically runs from the end of February to early May.
—Julia Eskins, Travel + Leisure, 10 Sep. 2023
Butter and sugaring the pan make for a crunchy outer layer.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2023
Compared to waxing, sugaring is a similar technique however the mixture is applied in the opposite direction of hair growth, then pulled in the normal direction.
—India Espy-Jones, Essence, 17 Aug. 2023
Like waxing, people should avoid sugaring within six months of taking Isotrentoin, a medication for cystic acne, Tips: Before trying sugaring at home, watch several videos to understand the process.
—Heather L. Brannon, Md, Verywell Health, 22 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sugar.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near sugar
Cite this Entry
“Sugar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sugar. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sugar
1 of 2 noun
sug·ar
ˈshu̇g-ər
1
: a sweet substance that is made up wholly or mostly of sucrose, is colorless or white when pure, is obtained from plants (as sugarcane or sugar beets), is a source of dietary carbohydrate, and is used as a sweetener and preservative of other foods
2
: any of various water-soluble compounds that vary widely in sweetness and make up the simpler carbohydrates
sugar
2 of 2 verb
sugared; sugaring
ˈshu̇g-(ə-)riŋ
1
: to make something less hard to take or put up with
sugar advice with praise
2
: to sprinkle or mix with sugar
3
: to change to crystals of sugar
candy sugars when cooked too long
4
: to make maple syrup or maple sugar
Medical Definition
sugar
noun
sug·ar
ˈshu̇g-ər
1
: a sweet crystallizable substance that consists chiefly of sucrose, is colorless or white when pure and tending to brown when less refined, is obtained commercially from sugarcane or sugar beet and less extensively from sorghum, maples, and palms, and is important as a source of dietary carbohydrate and as a sweetener and preservative for other foods and for drugs and in the chemical industry as an intermediate
2
: any of various water-soluble compounds that vary widely in sweetness and comprise the oligosaccharides including sucrose
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