In a café, ordering in fluent English not only helps you get the coffee you want easily but also instantly boosts your international appeal.

But did you know? Even the simple action of asking for “sugar” has more authentic English expressions than just “add sugar”!

Authentic Expressions for Adding Sugar to Coffee

Don’t limit yourself to “add sugar”; try these more authentic expressions:

• “With sugar, please.”: This is the simplest and most direct way to order, meaning “please add sugar”.

• “Sugar on the side, please.”: If you want sugar but don’t want it added to your coffee immediately, you can say this, meaning “sugar on the side”.

Example Sentences:

• “I’d like a latte with sugar, please.” (I want a latte, please add sugar.)

• “Could you give me sugar on the side?” (Can you put sugar on the side?)

How to say “no sugar” in English?

When ordering coffee with “no sugar”, many people would blurt out “no sugar”. Is it correct? Actually, it is correct and is the simplest expression. But can you think of other ways to say it?

Let me give you a hint: the word “free” is often used in conjunction with other words to indicate “without”, leading to the authentic expression often used by foreigners: “sugar-free”.

I would like a cup of Americano, no sugar please.

I ordered an Americano with no sugar.

How to say “less sugar” in English?

After learning the relevant English expressions for “adding sugar & no sugar”, how do we say “less sugar”?

The common expression used by foreigners is “go easy on the sugar”, where “easy” indicates the degree, meaning a small amount, thus translating to “add less sugar”.

Go easy on the sugar. Otherwise, it’s too sweet.

Put less sugar, otherwise it’s too sweet.

How to say “full sugar & half sugar” in English?

Half sugar is something everyone is familiar with, commonly referred to as “half sugar”. As for “full sugar”, it corresponds to the English term “regular sugar”, which typically means 3-4 teaspoons.

How to say “add sugar” in English?

Next, let’s talk about the relevant English expressions for “adding sugar & no adding sugar” in coffee. First, it’s important to note that you should never directly translate “add sugar” to “add sugar”, as this is clearly Chinglish. In fact, when foreigners ask for sugar in their coffee, they usually say “take sugar”, so once you grasp this expression, don’t translate it literally anymore.

Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that when waiters proactively ask customers if they want sugar in their coffee, they often say, “How do you take your coffee?” Make sure not to misunderstand this, as they are actually asking if you want sugar in your coffee. Sometimes they might also directly ask, “Do you take sugar?”

So how do you respond? Especially if you don’t need sugar, you can answer like this:

Do you take sugar in your coffee?

Do you want sugar in your coffee?

I don’t take sugar in coffee. Thank you.

I don’t take sugar in my coffee. Thank you.

use sugar

Foreigners often say “use sugar” when drinking coffee; what does this phrase mean? Can it be translated as “use sugar”? It feels a bit strange… In fact, here “use” is equivalent to the phrase “be/get used to”, meaning “to be accustomed to doing something”.

Therefore, when foreigners say “use sugar”, they are actually saying they are “used to drinking coffee with sugar”.

I use sugar in my coffee.

I am used to adding sugar in my coffee.

with sugar

Regarding adding sugar to coffee, there are many synonymous expressions. In addition to the two verb phrases “take sugar & use sugar”, there is also a prepositional phrase, “with sugar”. The usage is quite simple; let’s look at an example.

I like my coffee with sugar please.

I want my coffee with sugar.

Common English Expressions for Coffee

1. Americano – American Coffee

2. Espresso – Espresso

3. Latte – Latte

4. Cappuccino – Cappuccino

5. Mocha – Mocha

6. Macchiato – Macchiato (includes Espresso Macchiato and Caramel Macchiato)

7. Flat White – Flat White (New Zealand specialty)

8. Cold Brew – Cold Brew Coffee

9. Iced Coffee – Iced Coffee

10. Irish Coffee – Irish Coffee

11. Viennese Coffee – Viennese Coffee

12. Cold Latte – Iced Latte

13. Iced Cappuccino – Iced Cappuccino

14. Caramel Latte – Caramel Latte

15. Vanilla Latte – Vanilla Latte