burro
Americannoun
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burros
plural
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a small donkey, especially one used as a pack animal in the southwestern U.S.
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any donkey.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of burro
1790–1800; < Spanish < Portuguese, back formation from burrico ass < Vulgar Latin *burriccus for Late Latin burrīcus pony
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Explanation
A burro is a small donkey often used in the American Southwest and Mexico as a pack animal. Wild burros are the descendants of domesticated donkeys that escaped or were released and subsequently established wild herds. Burro comes from the Spanish burrico, "donkey," and the Late Latin burricus, "small, shaggy horse." Burros have inhabited the American Southwest for hundreds of years, first working in mines as pack animals during the gold rush and later roaming free in herds throughout the Arizona desert. They can also be found in arid regions of California, Nevada, Utah, and Mexico. Burros are known for their intelligence, hardiness, and affectionate natures. They make a loud braying noise.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
I had meant the burro line as a joke, but now I’m thinking it’s not such a bad idea.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2024
The time is ripe, they say, to severely reduce the burro population with a roundup that is certain to be controversial.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2023
For this reason, as well as lack of resources, proponents of a new burro roundup are pessimistic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2023
Meléndez’s illustrations of a seven-pointed star and a burro piñata are among a select group of 31 stamp issues this year.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 31, 2023
The pony set his feet like a burro when he felt the strain.
From "The Red Pony" by John Steinbeck
And more than 70,000 wild horses and burros now compete with livestock for forage.
From Salon ● Dec. 4, 2025
The youngest were two burros estimated to be two to four months old, according to DonkeyLand volunteers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2025
Scores of wild burros are trampling the ecology of Big Bear Valley and putting motorists at risk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2025
The burros have roamed the pine forests and sagebrush fields of the Big Bear Valley area, but their numbers could overwhelm rare and endangered species of plants.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2025
These burros were not wild ones, but had saddles on them, and we rode them back up the Canyon wall after spending the night in an inn at the bottom.
From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
