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sug·ar (shgər)
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n.
1. A sweet crystalline or powdered substance, white when pure, consisting of sucrose obtained mainly from sugarcane and sugar beets and used in many foods, drinks, and medicines to improve their taste. Also called table sugar.
2. Any of a class of water-soluble crystalline carbohydrates, including sucrose and lactose, having a characteristically sweet taste and classified as monosaccharides, disaccharides, and trisaccharides.
3. A unit, such as a lump or cube, in which sugar is dispensed or taken.
4. Slang Sweetheart. Used as a term of endearment.
v. sug·ared, sug·ar·ing, sug·ars
v.tr.
1. To coat, cover, or sweeten with sugar.
2. To make less distasteful or more appealing.
v.intr.
1. To form sugar.
2. To form granules; granulate.
3. To make sugar or syrup from sugar maple sap. Often used with off.
[Middle English sugre, from Old French sukere, from Medieval Latin succārum, from Old Italian zucchero, from Arabic sukkar, from Persian shakar, from Sanskrit śarkarā, grit, ground sugar.]
sugar·er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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