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.

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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)

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Sahara Cultural  

1. Desert in northern Africa.

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Discover More

At approximately 3.5 million square miles, it is the world's largest desert.

Other Word Forms

• Saharan adjective
• Saharian adjective
• trans-Sahara adjective
• trans-Saharan adjective

Etymology

Origin of Sahara

From Arabic ṣaḥra (plural ṣaḥārā ) “desert”

Example Sentences

Italian energy company Eni accelerated drilling projects in Algeria’s gas fields deep in the Sahara.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

In the agreement, facilitated by the Iranian company Sahara Thunder, Iran sought to transfer the technology, materials, and know-how needed External link to produce a variant of its now-infamous Shahed-136 drone inside Russia.

From Barron's • Mar. 17, 2026

The findings reinforce the idea that Northwest Africa was a major center of early human evolution during periods when shifting climates opened migration routes across what is now the Sahara.

From Science Daily • Feb. 7, 2026

One of his first journalism jobs was working for syndicated columnist Jack Anderson; during that time Peter spent a year as a war correspondent, covering conflicts in Afghanistan, the Middle East and the Western Sahara.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

If we don’t get burped to death by the cows we’ll end up like the Sahara Desert, says my father cheerfully, finishing up the meatloaf.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Related Words

• wilderness