Antonyms for mule

Grammar : Adj, noun

Spell : myool

Phonetic Transcription : myul

Definition of mule

Origin : "offspring of donkey and horse," from Old English mul, Old French mul "mule, hinny" (12c., fem. mule), both from Latin mulus (fem. mula) "a mule," probably from a pre-Latin Mediterranean language.
The mule combines the strength of the horse with the endurance and surefootedness of the ass, and is extensively bred for certain employments for which it is more suited than either; it is ordinarily incapable of procreation. With no good grounds, the mule is a proverbial type of obstinacy. [OED]
Properly, the offspring of a he-ass and a mare; that of a she-ass and a stallion is technically a hinny. Used allusively of hybrids and things of mixed nature. As a type of spinning machine, attested from 1797 (so called because a hybrid of distinct warp and woof machines). Meaning "obstinate, stupid, or stubborn person" is from 1470s; that of "narcotics smuggler or courier" first attested 1935.

As in incompliant : adj stubborn
As in unbendable : adj stubborn
As in uncompliant : adj stubborn
As in headstrong : adj stubborn
As in mongrel : noun animal of mixed background
As in spinning frame : noun machine for spinning yarn
As in burro : noun donkey
As in slipper : noun shoe
As in donkey : noun small domestic horselike mammal
As in half-breed : noun mixed creation
As in hybrid : noun composite, mixture

Example sentences :

They went to the camp we had left, but neither he nor the mule was there.
Extract from : « The Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Oregon and California » by Brevet Col. J.C. Fremont

The popular type and exponent of obstinacy is the mule, a most intelligent animal.
Extract from : « The Devil's Dictionary » by Ambrose Bierce

Duncan had been wont to say of him that Kellogg could talk the hind-leg off of a mule.
Extract from : « The Fortune Hunter » by Louis Joseph Vance

That he had observed, from his station in the rear, that she sat her mule as if she were exhausted.
Extract from : « Little Dorrit » by Charles Dickens

Then Robin checked his mule quickly and leaped from off its back.
Extract from : « The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood » by Howard Pyle

Never since the world stud—to do you justice, you are as obstinate as a mule.
Extract from : « Tales And Novels, Volume 8 (of 10) » by Maria Edgeworth

When they had finished he fed the rest of the meat to his mule.
Extract from : « The Chinese Fairy Book » by Various

"When you put those turkey-red trousers on your mule," I said.
Extract from : « W. A. G.'s Tale » by Margaret Turnbull

Then I began to laugh again, at the thought of a mule in trousers.
Extract from : « W. A. G.'s Tale » by Margaret Turnbull

You don't suppose that mule understands what you say to him, do you?
Extract from : « Tom Swift and his Electric Runabout » by Victor Appleton

Synonyms for mule

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019