Mule

Pronunciation

• RP IPA: /mjuːl/
• Rhymes: -uːl
• Homophones: mewl

From Middle English (reinforced by Anglo-Norman mul (masculine), mule (feminine)), from Old English mūl, all from Latin mūlus, from Proto-Indo-European *mukslós (compare Late Latin muscellus 'young he-mule', Old Russian mŭškŭ 'mule', Ancient Greek (Phocian) mychlós 'he-ass').

Full definition of mule

Noun

1. A generally sterile male or female hybrid offspring of a male donkey and a female horse.
2. A generally sterile hybrid offspring of any two species of animals.
3. A hybrid plant.
4. (informal) A stubborn person.
5. (slang) A person paid to smuggle drugs.
6. (numismatics) A coin or medal minted with obverse and reverse designs not normally seen on the same piece, either intentionally or in error.
7. (gaming) A character on an MMORPG used mainly to store extra inventory of the owner's primary character.
• 2007, David L. McClard, Verotopia Online: The MMORPG of the Century, Xlibris (2007), ISBN 9781425772895, page 89:He was in the middle of organizing his massive stash of rare and exquisite bounty, all kept safely in the inventory cache of a mule, an entirely separate character which he paid a monthly fee to maintain exclusively for that purpose.

Synonyms

Derived terms

• muling
• mulish
• kick like a mule
• stubborn as a mule

From Middle French mule ("slipper"), from Latin mulleus calceus ("red shoe"), from mullus ("red").

Noun

1. A shoe that has no fitting or strap around the heel, but which covers the foot.