mula

See also: Appendix:Variations of "mula"

Languages (34)

English

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A-Pucikwar • Ayutla Mixtec • Betawi • Catalan • Corsican • Czech • Dharug • Dupaningan Agta • Franco-Provençal • Galician • Gamilaraay • Hausa • Higaonon • Indonesian • Italian • Latin • Lower Sorbian • Malay • Maltese • Old English • Old Galician-Portuguese • Old Spanish • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Serbo-Croatian • Slovene • Spanish • Swedish • Tagalog • Volapük • Warlpiri • Yogad

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Page categories

English

Noun

mula (uncountable)

1. Alternative spelling of moola

Anagrams

• Luma, malu, Lamu, Ulam, luma, alum, maul

A-Pucikwar

Etymology

From Proto-Great Andamanese *mulə.

Noun

mula

1. egg

References

• Juliette Blevins, Linguistic clues to Andamanese pre-history: Understanding the North-South divide, pg. 22 (2009)

Ayutla Mixtec

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish mula.

Noun

mula

1. mule

References

• Hills O., Roberto, et al. (2004) Diccionario lulu ña̱ sanyaꞌá xiinꞌ nya̱nya̱ = Pequeño diccionario ilustrado en el mixteco de Ayutla, Gro.‎^[1] (overall work in Ayutla Mixtec and Spanish), Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C., page 7

Betawi

Alternative forms

• mulè (Kota)

Etymology

Inherited from Classical Malay mula, from Sanskrit मूल (mūla).

Noun

mula

1. start, beginning

Derived terms

• mulain

Anagrams

• malu

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈmu.lə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈmu.la]

Noun

mula f (plural mules)

1. female equivalent of mul
2. tree spurge

   Synonym: lleterassa

3. callus
4. garfish

   Synonym: agulla prima

Derived terms

• mulassa

Further reading

• “mula” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

Corsican

Una mula (1)

Una mula (2)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmula/

Etymology 1

From Latin mula, feminine of mulus.

Noun

mula f (masculine mulu, plural mule)

1. she-mule

Etymology 2

From its scientific name Mola mola.

Noun

mula f (plural mule)

1. sunfish, ocean sunfish (Mola mola)

Synonyms

• pesciu tondu

References

• “mula” in INFCOR: Banca di dati di a lingua corsa

Czech

mula

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈmula]
• Hyphenation: mu‧la
• Rhymes: -ula

Noun

mula f

1. mule (hybrid offspring of a male donkey and a female horse)

   Synonym: mul

Declension

Declension of mula (hard feminine)

	singular	plural
nominative	mula	muly
genitive	muly	mul
dative	mule	mulám
accusative	mulu	muly
vocative	mulo	muly
locative	mule	mulách
instrumental	mulou	mulami

See also

• mezek

Further reading

• “mula”, in Kartotéka Novočeského lexikálního archivu (in Czech)
• “mula”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Dharug

Alternative forms

• mulla

Noun

mula

1. man
   • 1793, Watkin Tench, A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson:

     One of our party lifted with ease two of them from the ground, in spite of their efforts to prevent him, whereas in return, no one of them could move him. They called him ‘murree mulla’ (a large strong man).

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

References

• Troy, Jakelin (1994). “The Sydney Language”, Macquarie Aboriginal Words. Sydney: Macquarie Library, 66.

Dupaningan Agta

Noun

mula

1. crop; something to be planted

Franco-Provençal

Etymology

Inherited from Latin mūla.

Noun

mula f (plural mules) (ORB, broad)

1. female mule

   Coordinate term: mulèt m

References

• mule in DicoFranPro: Dictionnaire Français/Francoprovençal – on dicofranpro.llm.umontreal.ca
• mula in Lo trèsor Arpitan – on arpitan.eu

Further information

• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “mūlus”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, volumes 6/3: Mobilis–Myxa, page 211

Galician

Verb

mula

1. inflection of mulir:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

Gamilaraay

Adjective

mula

1. soft

References

• (2006). “Gaay Garay Dhadhin, Gamilaraay and Yuwalaraay Picture Dictionary”

Hausa

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mù.lá/
  • (Standard Kano Hausa) IPA^(key): [mʊ̀.lə́]

Verb

mùla (grade 3)

1. (obsolete) to disappear, be gone

Higaonon

Verb

mula

1. to plant

Indonesian

Etymology

From Malay mula, from Sanskrit मूल (mūla).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mula/
• Hyphenation: mu‧la

Noun

mula (plural mula-mula)

1. origin

Affixed terms

• bepermulaan
• bermula
• bermula-mula
• memula
• memulakan
• mula-mula
• pemula
• permulaan
• sebermula
• semula

Further reading

• “mula” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmu.la/
• Rhymes: -ula
• Hyphenation: mù‧la

Noun

mula f (plural mule, masculine mulo)

1. she-mule

Anagrams

• Ulma

Latin

Etymology

Feminine of mūlus; mūlus +‎ -a (feminine suffix).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈmuː.la/, [ˈmuːɫ̪ä]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈmu.la/, [ˈmuːlä]

Noun

mūla f (genitive mūlae); first declension

1. female mule, she-mule

Declension

First-declension noun (dative/ablative plural in -īs or -ābus).

	singular	plural
nominative	mūla	mūlae
genitive	mūlae	mūlārum
dative	mūlae	mūlīs mūlābus
accusative	mūlam	mūlās
ablative	mūlā	mūlīs mūlābus
vocative	mūla	mūlae

Related terms

• mūlus

Descendants

• Aragonese: mula
• Franco-Provençal: mula
• French: mule
• Old Galician-Portuguese: mua, mũa, muha
  • Fala: múa
• → Old Galician-Portuguese: mula
  • Fala: mula
  • Portuguese: mula
• → Old Spanish: mula
  • Spanish: mula
    • → Ayutla Mixtec: mula
    • → Taos: mùloʼóna
    • → Zacatepec Chatino: mùlyā
    (see there for further descendants)

References

• “mula”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “mula”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "mula", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmula/

Noun

mula f (masculine mul)

1. female mule

Declension

declension of mula

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	mula	muli	mule
Genitive	mule	mulowu	mulow
Dative	muli	muloma	mulam
Accusative	mulu	muli	mule
Instrumental	mulu	muloma	mulami
Locative	muli	muloma	mulach

Noun

mula

1. inflection of mul:
   1. genitive/accusative singular
   2. nominative dual

Further reading

• Muka, Arnošt (1921, 1928) “mula”, in Słownik dolnoserbskeje rěcy a jeje narěcow (in German), St. Petersburg, Prague: ОРЯС РАН, ČAVU; Reprinted Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag, 2008
• Starosta, Manfred (1999) “mula”, in Dolnoserbsko-nimski słownik / Niedersorbisch-deutsches Wörterbuch (in German), Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag

Malay

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit मूल (mūla).

Pronunciation

• (Johor-Selangor) IPA^(key): [mulə, -la, -laʔ]
• (Riau-Lingga) IPA^(key): [mula, -lə, -laʔ]
• Rhymes: -ula, -la, -a

Noun

mula (Jawi spelling مولا, informal 1st possessive mulaku, 2nd possessive mulamu, 3rd possessive mulanya)

1. the beginning, the start

   dari mula lagi

   since the beginning

Derived terms

• bermula
• bermula-mula
• dimulai
• dimulakan
• memulai
• memulakan
• mula-mula
• mulai
• mulakan
• pemula
• pemulaan
• permulaan
• semula

Descendants

• Indonesian: mula

Verb

bermula

1. (intransitive) to begin, start

   Segalanya bermula di sini.

   Everything begins here.

Verb

memulakan

1. (transitive) to begin, to start, to commence

   Mulakan enjin sekarang.

   Start your engines now.

Further reading

• “mula” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

Maltese

Root
w-l-j
8 terms

Etymology

From Arabic مَوْلَى (mawlā).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmuː.la/

Noun

mula m (plural mwiel)

1. (obsolete) landlord

Derived terms

• Mulej

Old English

Noun

mūla

1. genitive plural of mūl

Old Galician-Portuguese

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin mūla, from mūlus + -a. Doublet of mua.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmula/
• Rhymes: -ula
• Hyphenation: mu‧la
• Homophone: Mula

Noun

mula f (plural mulas)

1. female equivalent of mulo (“female mule”)

   Synonyms: mũacha, mua

Descendants

• Fala: mula
• Portuguese: mula

References

• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “mula”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “mula”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Old Spanish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *mukslos

Latin mūlus

Latin -a

Latin mūla

Old Spanish mula

From Latin mūla, feminine of mūlus (“mule”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmula/

Noun

mula f (plural mulas)

1. mule
   • 13th century, Almeric, Fazienda de Ultramar, page 38vb:

     E dixo acab a abdias ue ala tr̃a por las fontanas todas de las tr̃as ⁊ por las torriẽtes quiçab trobaremos yerba ont biuan los cauallos elas mulas e nõ p̃damos las beſtias.

     And Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go into the land to every fountain throughout the land and to the brooks. Perhaps we will find grass on which the horses and mules can live, that we may not lose the beasts.”

Descendants

• Spanish: mula
  • → Ayutla Mixtec: mula
  • → Taos: mùloʼóna
  • → Zacatepec Chatino: mùlyā
  (see there for further descendants)

References

• Manuel Ferreiro (2014–2025) “mula”, in Universo Cantigas. Edición crítica da poesía medieval galego-portuguesa (in Galician), A Coruña: University of A Coruña, →ISSN
• Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “mula”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Xavier Varela Barreiro, Xavier Gómez Guinovart (2006–2018) “mula”, in Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmu.la/
• Rhymes: -ula
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

mula f

1. (Buddhism) This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Declension

Declension of mula

	singular	plural
nominative	mula	mule
genitive	muli	mul
dative	muli	mulom
accusative	mulę	mule
instrumental	mulą	mulami
locative	muli	mulach
vocative	mulo	mule

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

mula m animal

1. genitive/accusative singular of mul

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Adjective

mula

1. feminine nominative/vocative singular of muli

Further reading

• mula in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese mula, borrowed from Latin mūla, from mūlus + -a. Displaced Old Galician-Portuguese mua.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmu.lɐ/

• Rhymes: -ulɐ
• Hyphenation: mu‧la

Noun

mula f (plural mulas)

1. mule (hybrid offspring of a male donkey and a female horse)

   Coordinate term: bardoto

2. (strictly, rare) female equivalent of mulo (“female mule”)
3. (figuratively) a stubborn person
4. (jargon) a pile of salt
5. drug mule

References

• “mula”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025
• “mula”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2025
• “mula”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2025
• “mula”, in iDicionário Aulete (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025
• “mula” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French mouler.

Verb

a mula (third-person singular present mulează, past participle mulat) 1st conjugation

1. to mold

Conjugation

    conjugation of mula (first conjugation, -ez- infix)

infinitive			a mula
gerund			mulând
past participle			mulat
number		singular			plural
person		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	mulez	mulezi	mulează	mulăm	mulați	mulează
	imperfect	mulam	mulai	mula	mulam	mulați	mulau
	simple perfect	mulai	mulași	mulă	mularăm	mularăți	mulară
	pluperfect	mulasem	mulaseși	mulase	mulaserăm	mulaserăți	mulaseră
subjunctive		eu	tu	el/ea	noi	voi	ei/ele
	present	să mulez	să mulezi	să muleze	să mulăm	să mulați	să muleze
imperative		—	tu	—	—	voi	—
	affirmative		mulează			mulați
	negative		nu mula			nu mulați

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Latin mūla.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mûla/
• Hyphenation: mu‧la

Noun

mȕla f (Cyrillic spelling му̏ла)

1. mule (offspring of male donkey and female horse)

Declension

Declension of mula

	singular	plural
nominative	mȕla	mule
genitive	mule	mȗlā
dative	muli	mulama
accusative	mulu	mule
vocative	mulo	mule
locative	muli	mulama
instrumental	mulom	mulama

References

• “mula”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

Slovene

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mùːla/

Noun

múla f

1. mule (offspring of male donkey and female horse)

Inflection

The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.

Feminine, a-stem
nom. sing.	múla
gen. sing.	múle
	singular	dual	plural
nominative (imenovȃlnik)	múla	múli	múle
genitive (rodȋlnik)	múle	múl	múl
dative (dajȃlnik)	múli	múlama	múlam
accusative (tožȋlnik)	múlo	múli	múle
locative (mẹ̑stnik)	múli	múlah	múlah
instrumental (orọ̑dnik)	múlo	múlama	múlami

Further reading

• “mula”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU (in Slovene), 2014–2025

Spanish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Spanish mula, from Latin mūla, feminine of mūlus (“mule”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmula/ [ˈmu.la]

• Audio (Spain):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ula
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Noun

mula f (plural mulas)

1. female equivalent of mulo (“mule”)
2. trash
3. (Latin America) traitor
4. (Mexico) a smart, somewhat abusive person

Hypernyms

• ungulado
• perisodáctilo

Coordinate terms

• asno
• burro
• burdégano
• caballo
• zebra

Derived terms

• desconfiado como mula tuerta
• mulato
• pestaña de mula

Descendants

• → Ayutla Mixtec: mula
• → Taos: mùloʼóna
• → Zacatepec Chatino: mùlyā

Further reading

• “mula”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Swedish

mula (1)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²mʉːla/
• Rhymes: -²ʉːla

Etymology 1

From Old Swedish mule, via German, from Latin mulus.

Noun

mula c

1. mule (a generally sterile male or female hybrid offspring of a male donkey and a female horse)

Declension

Declension of mula

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	mula	mulas
	definite	mulan	mulans
plural	indefinite	mulor	mulors
	definite	mulorna	mulornas

Related terms

• mulåsna

Etymology 2

From mule (“muzzle”).

Verb

mula (present mular, preterite mulade, supine mulat, imperative mula)

1. (colloquial) to rub snow in someone's face
   • 2006, “16-åring friad från snöbollsmisshandel [16-year-old released in court from snowball abuse]”, in Sydsvenskan‎^[2]:

     Kamraten sade i tingsrätten att han bara tog tag i 16-åringen och mulade honom med snö innan han släppte taget.

     His friend said in district court that he only grabbed the 16-year-old and rubbed snow in his face before letting go.

2. (by extension, colloquial) to rub something in someone’s face

   Synonym: pula

   • 2008, P J Anders Linder, “En ding, ding, ding, ding värld? [A mad, mad, mad, mad world?]”, in Svenska Dagbladet‎^[3]:

     Bäst som Barack Obama stod och övade segergester framför hallspegeln ringde Reuters på dörren och mulade honom med gratulationstårtan.

     Just as Barack Obama stood in front of his hall mirror, practicing victory gestures, Reuters called on the door and rubbed a congratulatory cake in his face.

Usage notes

• This verb for rubbing snow in someone’s face is known for its many dialectal synonyms, and in a survey made in 2006 by the radio programme Språket i P1, they received 95 synonyms for this word based on 5800 replies, mula being the most common one.

Conjugation

Conjugation of mula (weak)

	active		passive
infinitive	mula		mulas
supine	mulat		mulats
imperative	mula		—
imper. plural1	mulen		—
	present	past	present	past
indicative	mular	mulade	mulas	mulades
ind. plural1	mula	mulade	mulas	mulades
subjunctive2	mule	mulade	mules	mulades
present participle		mulande
past participle		mulad

¹ Archaic. ² Dated. See the appendix on Swedish verbs.

Synonyms

• bryna (Gotland, Värmland)
• gnosa (Västergötland)
• grosa (Västergötland)
• gura (Gothenburg)
• göra (Västergötland)
• kröna
• molla
• muddra (Roslagen)
• mulla (Uppland)
• myla (Östergötland)
• mylla (Småland)
• målla
• möla (Västergötland)
• mösa
• pesa (Finland Swedish)
• pula (Närke, Västmanland, Uppland, Hälsingland, Åland)
• purra (Jämtland, Gästrikland)
• sylta (Gothenburg)
• tryna (Värmland)

Etymology 3

From Romani.

Verb

mula

1. (slang) (intransitive) to die
2. (slang) (transitive) to kill somebody

References

• “Om 95 olika ord för att gnida in snö i ansiktet [About 95 different words for rubbing snow in someone’s face]”, in Språket i P1‎^[4], Sveriges Radio, 2006 January 10, retrieved 23 October 2019
• mula in Svensk ordbok (SO)

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• mola — obsolete, Spanish-based spelling

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Sanskrit मूल (mūla, “root; origin”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /muˈlaʔ/ [mʊˈlaʔ]
• Rhymes: -aʔ
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Preposition

mulâ (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ)

1. from

   Synonyms: galing, buhat

Noun

mulâ (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ)

1. (formal, archaic) origin

   Synonyms: orihen, pinagmulan, pinanggalingan

Derived terms

• magmula
• mula ngayon
• mula't mula
• mula't sapol
• mulaan
• mulang buhat
• mulang danaw
• mulang dilim
• pagmula
• pagmulan
• pamula
• panimula
• parang tao sa mula
• pinagmulan
• samula
• simula
• simulain
• simulan
• tuntong mula

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Spanish mula, from Latin mūla.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈmula/ [ˈmuː.lɐ]
• Rhymes: -ula
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Noun

mula (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ)

1. mule (sterile hybrid of donkey and horse)

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Spanish mula, from Medieval Latin mula (“slipper, shoe with a thick sole”), presumably from classical Latin mulleus, the dyed shoe of either the patricians or senators, from Ancient Greek μύλλος (múllos).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈmula/ [ˈmuː.lɐ]
• Rhymes: -ula
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Noun

mula (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ)

1. mule (backless shoe)

Etymology 4

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /muˈla/ [mʊˈla]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Verb

mulá (complete nula, progressive nunula, contemplative pupula, Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ) (obsolete)

1. Apheretic form of pumula: to turn red

Etymology 5

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈmulaʔ/ [ˈmuː.lɐʔ]
• Rhymes: -ulaʔ
• Syllabification: mu‧la

Verb

mulà (complete nula, progressive nunula, contemplative pupula, Baybayin spelling ᜋᜓᜎ) (obsolete)

1. Apheretic form of pumula: to criticize

References

• “mula”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018
• Serrano-Laktaw, Pedro (1914) Diccionario tagálog-hispano, Ateneo de Manila, page 834.

Anagrams

• ulam, luma

Volapük

Noun

mula

1. genitive singular of mul

Warlpiri

Noun

mula

1. egg

Yogad

Noun

mulá

1. a plant