hinny

[ hin-ee ]

noun

, plural hin·nies.

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

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

verb

1. a less common word for whinny

hinny

²

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

noun

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

hinny

³

/ ˈhɪnɪ /

noun

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of hinny¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of hinny¹

variant of honey

Origin of hinny²

C17: from Latin hinnus, from Greek hinnos

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

A female donkey is called a jenny, so combine it with a horse and you kind of get a hinny.

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