Sierra Leone

American  

[lee-oh-nee, lee-ohn] / liˈoʊ ni, liˈoʊn /

noun

1. an independent republic in W Africa: member of the Commonwealth of Nations; formerly a British colony and protectorate. 27,925 sq. mi. (72,326 sq. km). Freetown.

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Sierra Leone British  

/ sɪˈɛərə lɪˈəʊnɪ, -lɪˈəʊn /

noun

1. a republic in W Africa, on the Atlantic: became a British colony in 1808 and gained independence (within the Commonwealth) in 1961; declared a republic in 1971; became a one-party state in 1978; multiparty democracy restored in 1991 but military rule was imposed following a coup in 1992, which led to civil unrest; consists of coastal swamps rising to a plateau in the east. Official language: English. Religion: Muslim majority and animist. Currency: leone. Capital: Freetown. Pop: 5 612 685 (2013 est). Area: 71 740 sq km (27 699 sq miles)

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Sierra Leone Cultural  

1. Republic in western Africa, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea to the north and east, and Liberia to the south. Freetown is its capital and largest city.

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Discover More

After the American Revolutionary War, attempts were made to settle freed slaves in Sierra Leone. Formerly a British protectorate, Sierra Leone became independent in 1961.

Other Word Forms

• Sierra Leonean
  noun

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Sierra Leone

Liberia is a small country tucked between Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast on Africa’s western edge.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

That outbreak hit west Africa in 2013-2016, killing more than 11,300 people, mainly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Peter Bai James, a health worker who served on the front lines in Sierra Leone during the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak, calls it an epidemiological paradox.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

These allegations are strenuously denied by Sheku Sei, director at the Sierra Leone Ministry of Fisheries.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

My uncle was right in one respect: in a typical household in the Kenema District of southeastern Sierra Leone, West Africa, my birth would not have been cause for celebration.

From "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina" by Michaela DePrince