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  

/ ˈfrʌktəʊs, ˈfrʊk-, -təʊz /

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

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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

Several factors are associated with the condition, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, low testosterone levels, and excessive fructose consumption from sugary drinks and processed foods.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2026

Laboratory experiments with liver cells isolated from mice showed that pyruvate and fructose worked together to increase fat storage in those cells.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2026

Her expertise stems in part from past health issues including fructose intolerance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Patti described sorbitol as being essentially "one transformation away from fructose," meaning the body can convert it into a closely related form that may produce similar effects.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026

That’s when Japanese chemists discovered an enzyme that could transform glucose into the much sweeter sugar molecule called fructose.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

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Related Words

• cellulose
• glucose
• lactose
• starch
• sugar

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