English Explanatory Dictionary

elephant bird

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Any of the very large extinct flightless birds that make up the genera Aepyornis and Mullerornis within family Aepyornithidae, and lived in Madagascar until the 17th or 18th century; especially †Aepyornis maximus.

Word forms

elephant bird elephant birds elephantbird

Etymology

Apparently from Marco Polo's description of the legendary roc as being capable of seizing a small elephant.

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