Sahara
Americannoun
-
a desert in northern Africa, extending from the Atlantic Ocean to the Nile valley. About 3,500,000 square miles (9,065,000 square kilometers).
-
any arid waste.
noun
Discover More
At approximately 3.5 million square miles, it is the world's largest desert.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Sahara
From Arabic ṣaḥra (plural ṣaḥārā ) “desert”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Remittances flowed into remote villages where the most reliable way to reinvest the windfall was to send another family member across the Sahara.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Polisario guerillas fought a long war with Morocco over independence of the Western Sahara region.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
Professor Abdelmadjid Chehma at the University of Ghardaia in Algeria, who has conducted experimental works on camels in the Sahara Desert, has a similar conclusion.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
In 1966, Duncan was working as a short-order cook at the Sahara, making 400 salads an hour, when she slipped on spilled grease, severely injuring her shoulder, hip and back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Leaves you standing there tilted in the Sahara.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
