mulga

American  

[muhl-guh] / ˈmʌl gə /

noun

plural

mulgas, mulga

1. an Australian shrub or small tree, Acacia aneura, forming dense growths in some areas and having foliage used as forage for livestock.

2. an object, as an Aboriginal shield or club, made from the wood of this tree.

---

mulga British  

/ ˈmʌlɡə /

noun

1. any of various Australian acacia shrubs, esp Acacia aneura, which grows in the central desert regions and has leaflike leafstalks

2. scrub comprised of a dense growth of acacia

3. the outback; bush

---

Etymology

Origin of mulga

First recorded in 1830–40; from Yuwaalaraay (an Australian Aboriginal language spoken near Lightning Ridge, northern New South Wales) malga

Example Sentences

Mr Peters had just finished urinating when the mulga snake struck his ankle.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2016

The venom of the mulga snake is not as toxic as in some other Australian snake species, but is produced in very large quantities.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2016

Growing up, Namatjira made sketches of scenes around him and later made images for mulga wood plaques.

From BBC • Jan. 4, 2013

We also saw the occasional camel, either moving through the mulga trees, its guttural bellows audible a mile away, or lying dead, limbs akimbo, where it had been hit by a car.

From Washington Post

In the Ilpirla or Manna totem the members of the clan go to a large boulder surrounded by stones, which are held to represent masses of Ilpirla or the manna of the mulga tree.

From The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India—Volume I (of IV) by Russell, R. V. (Robert Vane)