moa
any of several flightless birds of the family Dinornithidae, of New Zealand, related to the kiwis but resembling the ostrich: extinct since about the end of the 18th century.
Origin of moa
1Words Nearby moa
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use moa in a sentence
When humans hunted moas to extinction about 800 years ago, the Haast’s eagle died out as well.
This 30-pound eagle would take down 400-pound prey and dig through their organs | Margo Milanowski | December 3, 2021 | Popular-ScienceIt was a regular mill—the gizzard of a moa—full of pebbles as big as hickory nuts.
The Adventures of a Grain of Dust | Hallam HawksworthMr. Mantell is of opinion that the moa and his congeners continued in existence long after the advent of the aboriginal Maori.
Mythical Monsters | Charles GouldThe moa and dinoris were both gone; there were few insects, and no reptiles.
Greater Britain | Charles Wentworth DilkeOn one occasion he took three of our officers to moa, a native town situated near the south-east extremity of the island.
Cruise of the 'Alert' | R. W. Coppinger
This and the following are the two smallest species of moa, having been about the size of a large turkey.
Extinct Birds | Walter Rothschild
British Dictionary definitions for moa
/ (ˈməʊə) /
any large flightless bird of the recently extinct order Dinornithiformes of New Zealand: See ratite
Origin of moa
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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