Sa·har·a (s -hâr , -h r, -här) A vast desert of northern Africa extending east from the Atlantic coast to the Nile Valley and south from the Atlas Mountains to the region of the Sudan. During the Ice Age (about 50,000 to 100,000 years ago), the Sahara was a region of extensive shallow lakes watering large areas of vegetation, most of which had disappeared by Roman times. Introduction of the camel (probably in the first century a.d.) led to occupation by nomadic tribes who moved from oasis to oasis in search of water. Sa·har an adj. & n. |   |
Sahara [səˈhɑːrə]
n
(Placename) 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)
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Noun | 1. |  Sahara - the world's largest desert (3,500,000 square miles) in northern AfricaLibyan Desert - the northeastern part of the Sahara Desert in Libya and Egypt and Sudan Africa - the second largest continent; located to the south of Europe and bordered to the west by the South Atlantic and to the east by the Indian Ocean Tuareg - a member of a nomadic Berber people of the Sahara |
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