ratite

Meanings

Plural: ratites

Noun

• flightless birds having flat breastbones lacking a keel for attachment of flight muscles: ostriches; cassowaries; emus; moas; rheas; kiwis; elephant birds
• A member of a diverse group of mostly large, running, flightless birds that lack keels on their sternums, mostly extinct such as the elephant bird and moa, but including the extant cassowaries, emu, kiwi, ostrich, and rhea; formerly grouped together in the order Struthioniformes, and including the Paleognathae except the tinamous.

Adj

• Pertaining to running, flightless birds with no keels on their sternums (as opposed to carinate).

Synonyms

flightless bird, ratitate, ratite, ratite bird

Antonyms

carinate