Cordilleras

American  

[kawr-dl-yair-uhz, -air-, kawr-dil-er-uhz, kawr-thee-ye-rahs] / ˌkɔr dlˈyɛər əz, -ˈɛər-, kɔrˈdɪl ər əz, ˌkɔr ðiˈyɛ rɑs /

noun

1. a mountain system in western South America: the Andes and its component ranges.

2. a mountain system in western North America, including the Sierra Nevada, Coast Range, Cascade Range, and Rocky Mountains.

3. the entire chain of mountain ranges parallel to the Pacific coast, extending from Cape Horn to Alaska.

---

Cordilleras British  

/ korðiˈʎeras, ˌkɔːdɪlˈjɛərəz /

plural noun

1. the complex of mountain ranges on the W side of the Americas, extending from Alaska to Cape Horn and including the Andes and the Rocky Mountains

---

Other Word Forms

• Cordilleran adjective
• trans-Cordilleran adjective

Etymology

Origin of Cordilleras

First recorded in 1700–10, in reference to the Andes; cordillera ( def. )

Example Sentences

In the valleys between Colombia’s triplicate Cordilleras, you could sip coffee among green hills in the department of Quindío and salsa dance in the lowland city of Cali.

From New York Times • Nov. 17, 2022

In Peru's Rio Santa, which drains the Cordilleras Blanca mountain range, glacier contribution appears to be between 10 and 20 percent.

From Scientific American • Oct. 24, 2011

The mind recoils from the cold massiveness of the Cordilleras, bogs down in tropical swamps half as big as the U.S., is lost on Rivers of Doubt 3,000 miles long.

From Time Magazine Archive

Because of adverse weather 'reports Major Frank Felix Miranda flew the Colon northeast up the valley between the ranges of the Cordilleras, sat down safely at his destination.

From Time Magazine Archive

Taken together, the Cordilleras and the altiplano make up the Andes, the second-biggest chain of mountains in the world.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann