Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun, plural ra·rae a·ves [rair-ee ey-veez; Latin rah–rahy ah-wes] /ˈrɛər i ˈeɪ viz; Latin ˈrɑ raɪ ˈɑ wɛs/.
- a rare person or thing; rarity.
noun plural rarae aves (ˈrɛəriː ˈeɪviːz)
- an unusual, uncommon, or exceptional person or thing
c.1600, “peculiar person,” from Latin rara avis, literally “strange bird,” from rara, fem. of rarus “rare” (see rare (adj.1)) + avis “bird” (see aviary). Latin plural is raræ aves. Horace’s peacock (a Roman delicacy), Juvenal’s black swan (“Rara avis in terris, nigroque simillima cygno”).