fertility goddess in ancient Greek mythology; wife of Cronus and mother of Zeus; identified with Roman Ops and Cybele of ancient Asia Minor
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smaller of two tall fast-running flightless birds similar to ostriches but three-toed; found from Peru to Strait of Magellan
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larger of two tall fast-running flightless birds similar to ostriches but three-toed; found from Brazil to Patagonia
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Magna Mater \Magna Mater\ prop. n. A great nature goddess of ancient Phrygia in Asia Minor; the counterpart of the Greek {Rhea} and the Roman {Ops}.
Syn: Cybele, Dindymene, Great Mother, Mater Turrita. [WordNet 1.5]
Rhea \Rhe"a\, n. (Bot.) The ramie or grass-cloth plant. See {Grass-cloth plant}, under {Grass}.
Rhea \Rhe"a\, n. [L., a proper name.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of three species of large South American ostrichlike birds of the genera {Rhea} and {Pterocnemia}. Called also the {American ostrich}.
Note: The common rhea, or nandou ({Rhea Americana}), ranges from Brazil to Patagonia. Darwin's rhea ({Pterocnemia Darwinii}), of Patagonia, is smaller, and has the legs feathered below the knee.
Ramie \Ram"ie\ (r[a^]m"[-e]), n. [From Malay.] (Bot.) The grasscloth plant ({B[oe]hmeria nivea}); also, its fiber, which is very fine and exceedingly strong; -- called also {China grass}, and {rhea}. See {Grass-cloth plant}, under {Grass}.
"We're kind of getting tired of it," said Gene Wright, director of the Rhea County Emergency Management Agency.