megapode

[ meg-uh-pohd ]
/ ˈmɛg əˌpoʊd /

noun

any of several large-footed, short-winged gallinaceous Australasian birds of the family Megapodiidae, typically building a compostlike mound of decaying vegetation as an incubator for their eggs.

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Also called brush turkey, moundbird, mound builder, scrub fowl.

Origin of megapode

First recorded in 1855–60, megapode is from the New Latin word Megapodius genus name. See mega-, -pod

Words nearby megapode

megaphanerophyte, megaphone, megaphyll, megapixel, megaplex, megapode, megapolis, megaproject, megara, megarectum, megaris
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for megapode

British Dictionary definitions for megapode

megapode
/ (ˈmɛɡəˌpəʊd) /

noun

any ground-living gallinaceous bird of the family Megapodiidae, of Australia, New Guinea, and adjacent islands. Their eggs incubate in mounds of sand, rotting vegetation, etc, by natural heatAlso called: mound-builder See also brush turkey, mallee fowl
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012