sweetener

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A substance used to make food or drink taste sweet, often instead of sugar.

   Grammar: Countable: you can say a sweetener or sweeteners. It can also be uncountable in general use, as in 'a cup of coffee with sweetener'.

   Patterns

   • a sweetener
   • use sweetener
   • add sweetener to something

   She puts a sweetener in her tea instead of sugar.

   This drink contains an artificial sweetener.

   Many people use sweeteners to reduce calories.

2. 2nouncountablefigurative

   Something that makes an offer or situation more attractive, especially an extra payment or benefit.

   Grammar: Countable and often used in business or political contexts: a sweetener, sweeteners.

   Patterns

   • a sweetener for someone
   • offer a sweetener
   • as a sweetener

   The company offered a cash sweetener to close the deal.

   Tax breaks were used as a sweetener to attract investors.

   They added a free gift as a sweetener for new customers.

Word forms

Common combinations

artificial sweetener

Artificial sweeteners are common in diet sodas.

natural sweetener

Honey is a natural sweetener.

add a sweetener

He added a sweetener to his coffee.

sweetener for tea

Do you have any sweetener for tea?

Synonyms and how they differ

sugar

Sugar is the common natural sweetener; sweetener often suggests a substitute, especially an artificial one.

syrup

Syrup is a thick liquid sweetener, while sweetener can be a powder, liquid, or tablet.

Word family

sweeten verb

To make something sweet or more attractive.

sweet adjective

Having a taste like sugar.

sweetness noun

The quality of being sweet.

Commonly confused: sweetener or sweeter?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “sweetener”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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