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

Derived Forms

• Sierra Leonean
  noun

Example Sentences

"What have those diamonds done for our community, for Kono, for Sierra Leone? We are considered as poor in the world."

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

Daniel, the foreman in this remote, informal, small-scale mine in Kono, the diamond region of Sierra Leone, shows me the gravel he's picking through with his fingers.

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

In Sierra Leone, it's launched a project called Gemfair, where local artisanal miners are offered equipment, training, and more transparent pricing for their finds.

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

Shadow-fleet shipowners avoid such scrutiny by securing flags from poor, developing countries such as Sierra Leone, which collect fees for registering the ships, but provide little oversight.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

They told me they were heading for a village called Yele in Bonthe district that they had heard was safe because it was occupied by the Sierra Leone Armed Forces.

From "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah