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Sahara

American  
[suh-har-uh, -hair-uh, -hahr-uh] / səˈhær ə, -ˈhɛər ə, -ˈhɑr ə /

noun

  1. 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).

  2. any arid waste.

Sahara British  
/ səˈhɑːrə /

noun

  1. a desert in N Africa, extending from the Atlantic to the Red Sea and from the Mediterranean to central Mali, Niger, Chad, and the Sudan: the largest desert in the world, occupying over a quarter of Africa; rises to over 3300 m (11 000 ft) in the central mountain system of the Ahaggar and Tibesti massifs; large reserves of iron ore, oil, and natural gas. Area: 9 100 000 sq km (3 500 000 sq miles). Average annual rainfall: less than 254 mm (10 in.). Highest recorded temperature: 58°C (136.4°F)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Sahara Cultural  

  1. Desert in northern Africa.

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.

Madonna first appeared at Coachella in 2006, popping up at the Sahara Tent instead of the main stage to perform Confessions On A Dance Floor.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

One of the other notable changes is that Rezz dropped off from her Saturday night Sahara Tent set.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026

Zakia Zaghouani, 24, had been employed at the Sahara Hotel, a tourist destination in an unnamed Algerian city.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Suspicion also falls on the married owner of the Sahara, who was secretly in love with Zakia, and the dead woman’s boyfriend, who is arrested on evidence of a threatening letter supposedly written by him.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

The Nile River The Sahara desert covers the northern part of the African continent, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea.

From "Sterling Biographies®: Cleopatra: Egypt's Last and Greatest Queen" by Susan Blackaby

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.