ostrich

noun os·trich \ ˈä-strich , ˈȯ- also -strij \

|Updated on: 21 Jun 2018

Definition of ostrich

1 a : a swift-footed 2-toed flightless ratite bird (Struthio camelus) of Africa that is the largest of existing birds and often weighs 300 pounds (140 kilograms)

b : rhea

c : leather made from ostrich skin

[from the belief that the ostrich when pursued hides its head in the sand and believes itself to be unseen]

: one who attempts to avoid danger or difficulty by refusing to face it

—

ostrichlike

play \ˈä-strich-ˌlīk, ˈȯ- also -strij-\ adjective

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Recent Examples of ostrich from the Web

Kendall Jenner was also in attendance, wearing a striking ostrich-feather ensemble from Alexandre Vauthier.

— maeve mcdermott, USA TODAY, "Braless Kim Kardashian West gets cheeky in CFDA Awards speech: 'I'm naked most of the time'," 5 June 2018
Ostrich: Tall, Dark, and Heavy With its long neck and brown plumage, the ostrich is the tallest and heaviest bird on the planet.

— National Geographic, "The Biggest Bird That Ever Lived and 5 More Bird Superstars," 15 May 2018
His boots are light blue ostrich, custom-made by Rios of Mercedes.

— melissa lyttle, Smithsonian, "The First Family of Rodeo," 13 Dec. 2017
There are half-naked lovers, fishing cupids, chariots pulled by horse-size birds, elephants and ostriches and stags, mythological animals —and women in bikinis batting a ball.

— alice short, latimes.com, "Avoiding pain and finding only pleasure in Sicily," 27 May 2018
They can be compared to today's tinamous, small-bodied, flying and ground-dwelling relatives of ostriches and emus that live in Central and South America.

— ashley strickland, CNN, "These were the unlikely survivors after dinosaurs went extinct," 24 May 2018
The Ostrich Festival is a community event featuring live ostriches and ostrich-themed activities, national and regional entertainment, carnival midway, spectacular food, upscale arts & crafts and much more.

— azcentral, "A guide to all spring festivals in Phoenix from April through May," 6 Mar. 2018
Staff members at the Fuzhou zoo said visitors had been known to throw rocks at other animals, including ostriches, The Haixia Metropolis News reported.

— chris buckley, BostonGlobe.com, "China is furious as a kangaroo at a zoo dies after being pelted with rocks," 24 Apr. 2018
Senator Ted Cruz, who was born in Canada and has two Ivy League degrees, wears ostrich-skin cowboy boots to burnish his Texas credentials.

— sam schube, GQ, "James Comey Is a Chelsea Boot Boy," 16 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ostrich.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ostrich

Middle English, from Anglo-French ostriz, ostrige, from Vulgar Latin *avis struthio, from Latin avis bird + Late Latin struthio ostrich — more at struthious

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year