Definition of: sugar

(shg′ər) noun
1. A sweet crystalline disaccharide having the formula C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁, obtained chiefly from the juice of the sugarcane or sugar beet; called, according to its source, beet sugar, cane sugar, date sugar, grape sugar, maple sugar, etc. ♦ Collateral adjective: saccharine.
2. Any of a large class of sweet, soluble, optically active carbohydrates which are ketone or aldehyde derivatives of the higher alcohols. They are widely distributed in plants and animals, play an important role in nutrition, and are generally classified on the basis of chemical structure as monosaccharides, disaccharides, trisaccharides.
3. Flattering or honeyed words, especially if used to disguise or soften an unpleasant or severe reality.
4. Slang Sweet one: a pet name.
—v.t.
1. To sweeten, cover, or coat with sugar.
2. To make agreeable or less distasteful, as by flattery.
—v.i.
3. U.S. & Can. To make maple sugar.
4. To form or produce sugar; granulate. [<OF sucre <Med. L succarum, ult. <Arabic sukkar. Prob. related to SACCHARIN.]