Candy corn

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Grammarist

Candy corn is a North American confection invented in the 1800s and has long been associated with Halloween. We will look at the definition of candy corn, where it comes from and some examples of the term’s use in sentences.

Candy corn is a chewy candy that is fashioned to look like a kernel of corn. A piece of candy corn is comprised of three colors: white, orange and yellow. It is made of corn syrup, sugar, confectioner’s wax and binders. Candy corn was invented by George Renninger of the Wunderle Candy Company in Pennsylvania in the 1880s. Originally made by hand, candy corn is now made in molds, layering the different colors. Originally, candy corn was considered a summer treat. Probably because of a sales push to distribute candy corn to trick-or-treaters, candy corn became inextricably linked with Halloween. Today, candy corn is is produced for other holidays. Thanksgiving candy corn is brown, orange and white, Christmas candy corn is red, green and white, Valentine candy corn is pink, red and white, Easter candy corn is produced in pastel colors. The noun candy corn may be used as a singular or a plural.

Examples

A bumper crop of candy corn-inspired sweets is haunting grocery aisles this month— Candy Corn Oreos, Candy Corn M&M’s, Hershey’s Candy Corn Bars, even Candy Corn Peeps. (The Wall Street Journal)

Candy corn has a subtle caramel flavor that pairs well with a classic Vienna lager, which is a light- to medium-bodied beer that also has a subtle caramel flavor, according to Stock. (USA Today)

A snack mix that features three types of popcorn and some crunchy peanuts, in addition to colorful candy corn, will be a Halloween hit. (The Toledo Blade)