flightless

[flahyt-lis]

adjective

1. incapable of flying.

   flightless birds such as the moa, rhea, and dodo.

flightless

/ ˈflaɪtlɪs /

adjective

1. (of certain birds and insects) unable to fly See also ratite

Word History and Origins

Origin of flightless¹

First recorded in 1870–75; flight ¹ + -less

Example Sentences

She could not fly, for ostriches are flightless birds, but she could run like the wind, and gave the children ostrich rides that were thrillingly fast.

Read more on Literature

She knew the Latin phrase “tempus fugit,” which means “time flies,” like a bird—but there were flightless birds, after all: ostriches and emus and dodos and so on.

Read more on Literature

At the sound, Bertha spread her flightless wings into a threatening arch and emitted a long, furious hiss.

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New Zealand’s native animals, including flightless birds like the kiwi, evolved without ground-dwelling mammalian predators.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

A great horned owl found itself in a seriously sticky situation after becoming stuck in a glue trap in Orange County, rendering it both flightless and food-less.

Read more on Los Angeles Times