ostrich
/ˈɔs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.05 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A large flightless bird of the order Struthioniformes.
noun
A large flightless bird of the order Struthioniformes.
noun
One who buries their head in the sand instead of acknowledging problems.
Example Sentences
- "Could a Taff'ta ſcarf, a long Eſtridge vvhing, / A ſtiffe Iron Doublet, and a Brazeel Pole / Tempt thee from Cambrick ſheets, fine active Thighs, / From Caudles vvhere the precious Amber ſvvims?"
- "The Ostrich hath a compounded name in Greek and Latin—Struthio-Camelus, borrowed from a bird and a beast, as being a feathered and biped animal, yet in some ways like a camel; somewhat in the long neck; somewhat in the foot; and, as some imagine, from a camel-like position in the part of generation."
- ""But is not this fortunate?" continued she, taking up a superb plume of white ostrich feathers, fastened by a small agraffe, enamelled so as to represent a bunch of violets; "this is just what you wanted for the velvet cap you are to wear at Madame de l'Hôpital's masked ball.""
- "The San Juan market is Mexico City's most famous deli of exotic meats, where an adventurous shopper can hunt down hard-to-find critters such as ostrich, wild boar and crocodile."
- "The Lengua Indians of the Gran Chaco love to hunt the ostrich"
Etymology
From Middle English ostrich, ostriche, ostryche, ostrige, borrowed from Anglo-Norman ostrige and Old French ostruce, from Vulgar Latin *austruthio, from Latin avis (“bird”) + strūthiō (“ostrich”), from Ancient Greek στρουθίων (strouthíōn), or shortened from strūthiocamēlus, from Ancient Greek στρουθοκᾰ́μηλος (strouthokắmēlos), from στρουθός (strouthós, “sparrow”) + κάμηλος (kámēlos, “camel”). Compare Spanish avestruz and Portuguese avestruz.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɔs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/
- British English: /ˈɒs.tɹɪt͡ʃ/
Usage
Inflected Forms
Derived Forms
Phrases
American ostrich
Arabian ostrich
Asian ostrich
Barbary ostrich
black-necked ostrich
blue-necked ostrich
Cape ostrich
common ostrich