rhea

¹

[ ree-uh ]

noun

1. the ramie plant or fiber.

Rhea

²

[ ree-uh ]

noun

1. Classical Mythology. a Titan, the daughter of Uranus and Gaia, the wife and sister of Cronus, and the mother of Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, Hades, Demeter, and Hestia: identified with Cybele and, by the Romans, with Ops.
2. Astronomy. one of the moons of Saturn.
3. (lowercase) either of two South American, ratite birds, Rhea americana or Pterocnemia pennata, resembling the African ostrich but smaller and having three toes.
4. a female given name.

-rhea

³

1. variant of -rrhea.

Rhea

¹

/ ˈrɪə /

noun

1. Greek myth a Titaness, wife of Cronus and mother of several of the gods, including Zeus: a fertility goddess Roman counterpartOps

rhea

²

/ ˈrɪə /

noun

1. either of two large fast-running flightless birds, Rhea americana or Pterocnemia pennata , inhabiting the open plains of S South America: order Rheiformes . They are similar to but smaller than the ostrich, having three-toed feet and a completely feathered body See ratite

Rhea

³

/ ˈrɪə /

noun

1. the second largest satellite of the planet Saturn

Word History and Origins

Origin of rhea¹

First recorded in 1850–55, rhea is from the Assamese word rihā

Origin of rhea²

First recorded in 1700–10; from Latin Rhea, from Greek Rhéa; further origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of rhea¹

C19: New Latin; arbitrarily named after Rhea ¹

Example Sentences

Their peer-reviewed paper on rhea will be presented at the International Society for Computational Biology's annual conference, which will take place July 12-16 in Montreal.

From Science Daily

The rhea, nicknamed Chris, escaped from a farm in Diss, Norfolk, in November.

From BBC

The group took custody of several dozen animals, including a five-month-old, female South American ostrich — or lesser rhea — named Eddy found in the crowded basement.

From Seattle Times

The Tehuelche were innovators, too: Outsiders marveled at their bolas, weighted rope snares they swung and launched from horseback to hunt llamalike guanaco and flightless rhea birds.

From Science Magazine

Ellen has also interrupted Blake’s TikToks to stare curiously at the phone — as has Princess, an affectionate deer, and Regina, a curious rhea.

From Washington Post