tinamou

American  

[tin-uh-moo] / ˈtɪn əˌmu /

noun

1. any of several birds of the family Tinamidae, of South and Central America, related to the ratite birds but superficially resembling the gallinaceous birds.

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tinamou British  

/ ˈtɪnəˌmuː /

noun

1. any bird of the order Tinamiformes of Central and South America, having small wings, a heavy body, and an inconspicuous plumage

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Etymology

Origin of tinamou

First recorded in 1775–85; from French, from Galibi (a Carib language spoken in French Guiana) tinamu

Example Sentences

Colossal Biosciences would again edit the genes of a close living relative, such as the emu or tinamou, and call it a moa.

From Slate • Aug. 8, 2025

Reid Rumelt, a computational ornithologist, just returned to his D.C. home from the Andes Mountains, where he recorded 3,600 hours of the endangered undulated tinamou.

From Washington Post • Jan. 10, 2020

His recordings of the unique, mournful song of the tinamou will form the baseline count for a long-running study that couldn’t have been done by mere observation.

From Washington Post • Jan. 10, 2020

But there is a striking exception: the eggs of the tinamou, a shy, ground-dwelling bird native to South and Central America.

From New York Times • Dec. 22, 2014

It was for this same reason that the tinamou and quail and other ground-nesting birds escaped the keen noses of the foxes, otherwise they would have been exterminated long ago.

From The Black Phantom by Miller, Leo E. (Leo Edward)