fructose

American  

[fruhk-tohs, frook-, frook-] / ˈfrʌk toʊs, ˈfrʊk-, ˈfruk- /

noun

1. Chemistry, Pharmacology. a yellowish to white, crystalline, water-soluble, levorotatory ketose sugar, C 6 H 12 O 6 , sweeter than sucrose, occurring in invert sugar, honey, and a great many fruits: used in foodstuffs and in medicine chiefly in solution as an intravenous nutrient.

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fructose British  

/ -təʊz, ˈfrʌktəʊs, ˈfrʊk- /

noun

1. Also called: laevulose.   fruit sugar.  a white crystalline water-soluble sugar occurring in honey and many fruits. Formula: C 6 H 12 O 6

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fructose Scientific  

/ frŭk′tōs′ /

1. A simple sugar (monosaccharide) found in honey, many fruits, and some vegetables. Fructose linked to glucose is the structure of table sugar, or sucrose. Fructose is an important source of energy for cellular processes. Chemical formula: C ₆ H ₁₂ O ₆ .

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Etymology

Origin of fructose

First recorded in 1860–65; fruct- + -ose ²

Explanation

Fructose is a kind of sugar. You consume fructose every time you eat an apple or a bunch of grapes, or when you stir honey into your tea and take a sip. Fructose is also known as "fruit sugar" because it's present in most types of fruit. Chemically, fructose is a simple or hexose sugar, one with six carbon atoms in it, and it's absorbed directly into your bloodstream when you eat it. It's also one of the very sweetest sugars. The word dates from 1857, from the Latin fructus, or "fruit," and the suffix -ose, used in chemical names of sugars.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fructose

Unlike many risk factors that patients cannot change, fructose intake can be reduced through dietary choices.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

That possibility is especially notable because fructose is widely consumed in the United States.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

In some people, high fructose corn syrup accounts for ~8-20% of daily calorie intake.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

A study from The Wistar Institute has identified a surprising connection between fructose, a widely consumed dietary sugar, and the spread of an aggressive type of ovarian cancer.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026

It means cheap animal feed to produce cheap meat and cheap high- fructose corn syrup for soft drinks.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

Related Words

• cellulose
• glucose
• lactose
• starch
• sugar