sertão

See also: Sertao and Sertão

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Portuguese sertão.

Noun

sertão (plural sertãos or sertões)

  1. (geography) The semi-arid, barren inland portion of northeastern Brazil.
    • 1984, Mario Vargas Llosa, translated by Helen R. Lane, The War of the End of the World, Folio Society, published 2012, page 58:
      The news soon spread throughout the sertão: the saint who had wandered the length and breadth of the land for a quarter of a century had put down roots in that place surrounded by stony hills called Canudos […] .
  2. (loosely) A similarly arid area in another region or country.

Anagrams

Portuguese

Alternative forms

Etymology

Uncertain, possible shortening of desertão (“big desert”) (which is from deserto +‎ -ão). Alternatively, possibly from Latin sertānus. Another hypothesis suggests borrowing from Kimbundu muxitu or muchitum, first adapted into Portuguese as "muceltão" and later evolving into its modern form

Pronunciation

 
  • (Brazil) IPA(key): /seʁˈtɐ̃w̃/ [sehˈtɐ̃ʊ̯̃]
    • (São Paulo) IPA(key): /seɾˈtɐ̃w̃/ [seɾˈtɐ̃ʊ̯̃]
    • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA(key): /seʁˈtɐ̃w̃/ [seχˈtɐ̃ʊ̯̃]
    • (Caipira) IPA(key): /seɻˈtɐ̃w̃/ [seɻˈtɐ̃ʊ̯̃]

  • Rhymes: -ɐ̃w̃
  • Hyphenation: ser‧tão

Noun

sertão m (countable and uncountable, plural sertões)

  1. (geography)
    1. The semi-arid, barren inland portion of northeastern Brazil.
    2. (loosely) A similarly arid area in another region or country.
  2. (Brazil) countryside, backlands or outback

Derived terms

Further reading

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