sugar maple

American  

noun

1. any of several maples having a sweet sap, especially Acer saccharum (the state tree of New York, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin), having a short trunk and long, curving branches, yielding a hard wood used for making furniture and being the chief source of maple sugar.

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sugar maple British  

noun

1. a North American maple tree, Acer saccharum, that is grown as a source of sugar, which is extracted from the sap, and for its hard wood

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Other Word Forms

• sugar-maple adjective

Etymology

Origin of sugar maple

An Americanism dating back to 1725–35

Example Sentences

Old growth forests of sugar maple, birch and hemlock towered over our tents, cushioned our trails with pine needles and scented our days.

From Seattle Times

The key to the project is utilizing some underdog trees that are not in the same class as the sugar maples typical of Vermont.

From Seattle Times

In the northern broadleaf forests of the U.S. and Canada, alien earthworms' impact on soil stresses trees such as sugar maples by altering the microhabitat of their soils.

From Science Daily

Additionally, short, cold days prompt some tree species, including red and sugar maples, to produce red anthocyanins.

From National Geographic

This nest, high in a sugar maple in the hospital’s courtyard, was massive—and looked like metal.

From Scientific American