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ratite

[rat-ahyt]

adjective

having a flat, unkeeled sternum, as an ostrich, cassowary, emu, or moa.

noun

a bird having a ratite breastbone.

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a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.

an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.

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Origin:
1875–80; < Latin rat(is) raft + -ite²

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

ratite (ˈrætaɪt)

—*adj*
1.	(of flightless birds) having a breastbone that lacks a keel for the attachment of flight muscles
2.	of or denoting the flightless birds, formerly classified as a group (the Ratitae), that have a flat breastbone, feathers lacking vanes, and reduced wings

—n
3.	a bird, such as an ostrich, kiwi, or rhea, that belongs to this group; a flightless bird

[C19: from Latin ratis raft]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Related Words

cassowary kiwi Rhea

struthious tinamou wing

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ratite

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