Advertisement

Advertisement

View synonyms for donkey

donkey

[ dong-kee, dawng-, duhng- ]

noun

, plural don·keys.
  1. the domestic ass, Equus asinus.
  2. (since 1874) a representation of this animal as the emblem of the U.S. Democratic Party.
  3. a stupid, silly, or obstinate person.
  4. a woodworking apparatus consisting of a clamping frame and saw, used for cutting marquetry veneers.


adjective

  1. Machinery. auxiliary:

    donkey engine; donkey pump; donkey boiler.

donkey

/ ˈdɒŋkɪ /

noun

  1. Also calledass a long-eared domesticated member of the horse family ( Equidae ), descended from the African wild ass ( Equus asinus )
  2. a stupid or stubborn person
  3. slang.
    a footballer known for his or her lack of skill

    the players are a bunch of overpriced and overrated donkeys

  4. talk the hind leg(s) off a donkey
    to talk endlessly
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


donkey

  1. A symbol (see also symbol ) of the Democratic party , introduced in a series of political cartoons by Thomas Nast during the congressional elections of 1874. ( Compare elephant .)


Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of donkey1

First recorded in 1775–85; of uncertain origin; perhaps alteration of Dunkey, diminutive name or pet form of Duncan, man's name; perhaps a derivative of dun “dull, grayish brown”
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of donkey1

C18: perhaps from dun dark + -key, as in monkey
Discover More

Example Sentences

If memory serves, donkey dung doesn’t broadcast itself with anything like the strength of horse dung.

These are your site’s biggest donkeys, the pages with the highest number of impressions but deliver lower than expected CTR for their ranking position.

My husband wrote a note apologizing that the camel and donkey mates were missing.

Cars, buses, truck—even motorcycles, bicycles and donkeys—may be required to get the vaccine to rural areas.

From Fortune

Sixteen contenders — mostly dogs, with one donkey, a rooster and a cat in the mix — fought hard for the title of mayor.

Nearby a family of Turkish Kurds busied themselves in their fields piling vegetables onto a donkey-drawn cart.

In the second instance, it is a man and his wife pleading from atop a donkey.

He patrolled on foot, and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) filled the donkey paths that crisscrossed the wadis and hills.

For the donkeys who have long felt that Donkey Ball should not be real, 2014 earns an A-.

He was painting the Sistine Chapel, and he was angry at one of the bishops or cardinals, so he painted him in with donkey ears.

His donkey stumbled—it was natural enough, seeing that the reins hung loose and his feet had somehow left the stirrups.

His donkey had gone lame, he abandoned it to the boys behind, he climbed in to drive with Lettice.

Ibrahim stopped his song to sigh, and struck his donkey lightly under the right ear, causing it to turn sharply to the left.

And now Ibrahim struck his donkey again, and they went on rapidly towards the Libyan mountains.

Could all these people read her mind and follow the track of her distastes and desires, even the dragomans and the donkey-boys?

Advertisement

Related Words

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


Don Juanismdonkey derby