[sugar maple] n (1731) 1: a maple (Acer saccharum) of eastern No. America with 3- to 5-lobed leaves, hard close-grained wood much used for cabinetwork, and sap that is the chief source of maple syrup and maple sugar--called also rock maple, hard maple
2: any of several maples (esp. Acer nigrum and A. grandidentatum) sometimes considered subspecies of the sugar maple