Meanings
noundonkeypower (plural donkeypowers or donkeypower)
plural donkeypowers
- humorousA unit of power equal to 250 watts, or about one-third of a horsepower.
How to talk about units of power less than 1 horsepower? Use a smaller creature, of course. Roughly 1/3rd of a single unit of horsepower—or roughly 250 watts—is now labelled one donkeypower.
2020 December 27, Paul Anthony Jones, “Donkeypower”, in Haggard Hawks
Origin
From donkey + power, based on horsepower.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
donkeypower. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/donkeypower
MLA
“donkeypower.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/donkeypower. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “donkeypower,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/donkeypower.
Source: donkeypower on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.