beet sugar

American  

noun

1. sugar from the roots of the sugar beet.

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beet sugar British  

noun

1. the sucrose obtained from sugar beet, identical in composition to cane sugar

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Etymology

Origin of beet sugar

First recorded in 1825–35

Compare meaning

How does beet-sugar compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• beet sugar vs. cane sugar

Example Sentences

In the U.S., at one time the world’s leader in the making of maple syrup, production plummeted in the 20th century as the country’s population became more urban, and cane and beet sugar less expensive.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 24, 2025

The introduction of phosphates for fertilizer and bone char as an ingredient in beet sugar processing at the beginning of the 19th century transformed bones into a hot commodity.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 2, 2024

To pressure companies using modified beet sugar, he threatened a protest against Hershey.

From New York Times • Jun. 6, 2023

The cake was a heat-treated amalgam of pulverized grass seed, chicken eggs, cow milk and extracted beet sugar.

From Scientific American • Dec. 13, 2022

No one could have seen it at the time, but the invention of beet sugar was not just a challenge to cane.

From "Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science" by Marc Aronson