Saccharin is a very sweet chemical substance that some people use instead of sugar, especially when they are trying to lose weight.
saccharin in British English
(ˈsækərɪn)
noun
a very sweet white crystalline slightly soluble powder used as a nonfattening sweetener. Formula: C7H5NO3S
Word origin
C19: from saccharo- + -in
saccharin in American English
(ˈsækəˌrɪn)
noun
US
a white, crystalline coal-tar compound, C7H5NO3S, about 500 times sweeter than cane sugar, used as a sugar substitute in diabetic diets, as a noncaloric sweetener, etc.
Word origin
so named (1879) by its discoverers, I. Remsen & C. Fahlberg, U.S. chemists < ModLsaccharum, sugar < L < Gr sakcharon, ult. < Sans śarkarā, pebble, sugar (> sugar) + -in1