Sierra - Definition and Overview

This word can easily be mistaken for a girls' Christian name, and has been heard that way on various occasions.

A sierra is a Spanish term meaning a mountain range. The word literally means "saw." It is used for various mountain ranges in Spanish-speaking or formerly Spanish-speaking countries.

See:

• Sierra Leone
• Sierra Madre (Mexico)
• Sierra Nevada (US)
• Sierra Nevada (Spain)

Sierra is also:

• a video game company (see Sierra Entertainment)
• the letter S in the NATO phonetic alphabet.
• a car produced by Ford from 1982 to 1992, the successor to the Cortina, see Ford Sierra