Standard Lemma guide

megapode

adj · noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Characteristic of the Megapodiidae.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Any of several chicken- or turkey-like birds in the family Megapodiidae, which incubate their eggs by burying them where they receive warmth from decaying vegetation, solar radiation or geothermal heat.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

large-footed short-winged birds of Australasia; build mounds of decaying vegetation to incubate eggs

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mound bird, mound-bird, mound builder, scrub fowl

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: gallinaceous bird, gallinacean

Narrower terms: mallee fowl, leipoa, lowan, Leipoa ocellata, brush turkey, Alectura lathami, maleo, Macrocephalon maleo

History

Etymology

From mega- + -pode, after scientific Latin Megapodius (genus name).

Across languages

Translations

9 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 塚雉 /冢雉 (zhǒngzhì) — bird
  • Finnish: isojalkakana — bird
  • French: mégapode — bird
  • Indonesian: gosong — bird
  • Italian: megapodio — bird
  • Japanese: ツカツクリ (tsuka-tsukuri) — bird
  • Japanese: 塚作り (tsuka-tsukuri) — bird
  • Spanish: megápodo — bird
  • Tagalog: tabon — bird