Glucose is classified as what type of sugar?

Glucose is categorized as a monosaccharide, which is the simplest form of sugar. Monosaccharides are single sugar molecules that cannot be hydrolyzed into simpler sugars. They serve as the building blocks for more complex carbohydrates. Glucose, specifically, is a hexose sugar, meaning it contains six carbon atoms. It plays a crucial role in cellular respiration and is a primary energy source for living organisms.

In contrast, disaccharides consist of two monosaccharide molecules linked together; polysaccharides are long chains of monosaccharides; and oligosaccharides contain a small number of monosaccharide units, typically ranging from two to ten. Given that glucose is a single molecule, it fits perfectly into the definition of a monosaccharide.