Carbohydrates are substances, found in certain kinds of food, that provide you with energy. Foods such as sugar and bread that contain these substances can also be referred to as carbohydrates.
Food is made up of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.
...carbohydrates such as bread, pasta or chips.
carbohydrate in British English
(ˌkɑːbəʊˈhaɪdreɪt)
noun
any of a large group of organic compounds, including sugars, such as sucrose, and polysaccharides, such as cellulose, glycogen, and starch, that contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with the general formula Cm(H2O)n: an important source of food and energy for animals
Informal term: carb
carbohydrate in American English
(ˌkɑrboʊˈhaɪdreɪt; ˈkɑrbəˈhaɪdreɪt)
noun
any of certain organic compounds, including the sugars, starches, and celluloses,which usually have the general formula Cx(H2O)y: carbohydrates are subdivided into monosaccharides, disaccharides, etc., and form an important class of foods in animal nutrition, supplying energy to the body
Word origin
carbo- + hydrate
Examples of 'carbohydrate' in a sentence
carbohydrate
It forms the basis for carbohydrate assimilation in all of northern and western Zimroel.
Robert Silverberg VALENTINE PONTIFEX (2001)
In other languages
carbohydrate
British English: carbohydrate /ˌkɑːbəʊˈhaɪdreɪt/ NOUN
Carbohydrates are energy-giving substances found in foods such as sugar and bread.
...carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, or potatoes.