sierra

name

1. Ellipsis of Sierra Nevada: a mountain range in the Western United States.

   “I am going to the Sierra next weekend.”

   “Most flocks in the Sierra and the Rocky Mountains live above the timber-line and at an altitude of twelve thousand feet.”

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from Spanish sierra, from Latin serra (“saw”), referring to the saw-tooth profile of the crestline of the range seen from a distance.

1. A rugged range of mountains.

   “Holonym: cordillera”

   “Meronym: sawback”

2. Alternative letter-case form of Sierra from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.
3. A scombroid fish.
4. A relatively low-quality grade of Spanish saffron.

   “Mancha selecto is the world's best saffron: deep-red stamens, as long as the first joint of your thumb, packed and date-stamped. Lesser types, like sierra saffron, have shorter stamens and a quantity of white and yellow flower parts.”