Main Entry:

rat·ite

Pronunciation:

\ˈra-ˌtīt\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

ultimately from Latin ratitus marked with the figure of a raft, from ratis raft

Date:

1877

: a bird with a flat breastbone ; especially : any of various mostly flightless birds (as an ostrich, rhea, emu, moa, or kiwi) with small or rudimentary wings and no keel on the sternum that are probably of polyphyletic origin and are assigned to a number of different orders

— ratite adjective