hinny

American  

[hin-ee] / ˈhɪn i /

noun

plural

hinnies

1. the sterile offspring of a male horse and a female donkey, similar in appearance and behavior to a mule, but usually smaller and with a more horselike head.

---

hinny ¹ British  

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

noun

1. the sterile hybrid offspring of a male horse and a female donkey or ass Compare mule 1

---

hinny ² British  

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

verb

1. a less common word for whinny

---

hinny ³ British  

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

noun

1. dialect a term of endearment, esp for a woman or child

---

Etymology

Origin of hinny

First recorded in 1680–90; obsolete hinne (from Latin hinnus; akin to Greek gínnos “mule”) + -y ²

Example Sentences

This worthy farm and sanctuary is home to 19 assorted equines — including three mares and their foals saved from slaughter, two rescued mustangs, plus mini-horses, mini-donkeys, a hinny and a mule.

From Washington Times

A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse, and a hinny is the offspring of a male horse and female donkey.

From New York Times

North Carolina’s growing horse population has a dark side - cases of abuse and neglect, including the 29 horses, five donkeys, one hinny and one mule now living at Pasture Pals.

From Washington Times

Life is going to be hard enough, but then they go and call you a hinny and you’ve got that “Boy Named Sue” thing going too.

From Time

Fat rascals are not dissimilar to singing hinnies and were added to represent the lesser-spotted but very much included male members of the group.

From The Guardian