oligosaccharide

American

[ol-i-goh-sak-uh-rahyd, -rid] / ˌɒl ɪ goʊˈsæk əˌraɪd, -rɪd /

noun

Chemistry.

any carbohydrate yielding few monosaccharides on hydrolysis, as two, three, or four.

oligosaccharide British

/ ˌɒlɪɡəʊˈsækəˌraɪd, -rɪd /

noun

any one of a class of carbohydrates consisting of a few monosaccharide units linked together Compare polysaccharide

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

oligosaccharide Scientific

/ ŏl′ĭ-gō-săk′ə-rīd′,ō′lĭ- /

A carbohydrate consisting of a relatively small and specifiable number of monosaccharides joined together. Lactose, maltose, and sucrose are oligosaccharides consisting of two simple sugars. Raffinose is an oligosaccharide consisting of three simple sugars.
Compare monosaccharide polysaccharide

Etymology

Origin of oligosaccharide

First recorded in 1925–30; oligo- + saccharide

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023