mulatto

M3U1L1A1T1T1O1
US/mʊˈlɑtoʊ/US[məˈlɑɾoʊ̯]Caribbean/mʊˈlaːtoː/UK/m(j)ʊˈlætəʊ/

noun

A person of mixed black and white descent, especially a person with one black and one white parent or two mulatto parents.

UncommonScrabble 9

Meanings

nounmulatto (plural mulattoes or mulattos)

plural mulattoes · plural mulattos

  1. derogatoryhistoricalsometimesA person of mixed black and white descent, especially a person with one black and one white parent or two mulatto parents.

    The supermodelesque mulatto woman licked her lips and smiled invitingly.

    2004, Arthur Herzog, Jr, Icetopia, page 78
    2 more examples

    Respectable folk who did not want trouble stayed withindoors; but young apprentices were abroad in force; Negroes and mulattoes; rope- makers and laborers from along the waterfront; and sailors hastening ashore from the ships […]

    1949, Edward Nicholas, The hours and the ages: a sequence of Americans, page 77

    The official mouthpiece of the Rosas government, La Gaceta Mercantil, praised Afro-Argentines as “valiant defenders of liberty who have won fame and glory in a hundred battles,” adding that “General Rosas so appreciates the mulattos and morenos that he has no objection to seating them at his table and eating with them.” In other respects, however, the persistence of racism against Afro-Argentines, Indians, and gauchos showed regrettable continuities with the colonial past.

    2005, Jeffrey M. Shumway, The Case of the Ugly Suitor & Other Histories of Love, Gender, & Nation in Buenos Aires, 1776-1870

    Synonyms: mestizo, metis

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA person of mixed black and white descent, especially a person with one black and one white parent or two mulatto parents.

Origin

  1. Latinmūlus“mule”
  2. Spanishmulato“of mixed breed, young mule”
  3. Englishmulatto

Borrowed from Portuguese and/or Spanish mulato (“of mixed breed, young mule”), from mulo (“mule”), from Latin mūlus (“mule”). Perhaps an allusion to the hybrid origin of mules. Doublet of mulato.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic خِلَاسِيّ
  • خِلَاسِيّ (ḵilāsiyy)person of mixed black and white descent
Bulgarian мулат, мула́тка
  • мулат (mulat)person of mixed black and white descent
  • мула́тка (mulátka)person of mixed black and white descent
Catalan mulat, mulato
  • mulatperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulatoperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulataperson of mixed black and white descent
Chinese Mandarin 黑白混血兒 /黑白混血儿
  • 黑白混血兒 /黑白混血儿 (hēibái hùnxiěr)person of mixed black and white descent
Czech mulat, mulatka
  • mulatperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulatkaperson of mixed black and white descent
Danish mulat
  • mulatperson of mixed black and white descent
Dutch mulat, mulattin
  • mulatperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulattinperson of mixed black and white descent
  • halfbloedperson of mixed black and white descent
  • dubbelbloedperson of mixed black and white descent
Finnish mulatti
  • mulattiperson of mixed black and white descent
French mulâtre, mulâtresse
  • mulâtreperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulâtresseperson of mixed black and white descent
  • café au laitperson of mixed black and white descent
German Mulatte, Mulattin
  • Mulatteperson of mixed black and white descent
  • Mulattinperson of mixed black and white descent
Greek μιγάς
  • μιγάς (migás)person of mixed black and white descent
Hebrew בן־תערובות
  • בן־תערובות (ben-ta'a'rovot)person of mixed black and white descent
Hungarian mulatt
  • mulattperson of mixed black and white descent
Italian mulatto, mulatta
  • mulattoperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulattaperson of mixed black and white descent
Japanese ムラート
  • ムラート (murāto)person of mixed black and white descent
Norwegian Bokmål mulatt
  • mulattperson of mixed black and white descent
Polish Mulat, Mulatka
  • Mulatperson of mixed black and white descent
  • Mulatkaperson of mixed black and white descent
Portuguese mulato, mulata
  • mulatoperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulataperson of mixed black and white descent
Romanian mulatru, mulatră
  • mulatruperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulatrăperson of mixed black and white descent
Russian мула́т, мула́тка
  • мула́т (mulát)person of mixed black and white descent
  • мула́тка (mulátka)person of mixed black and white descent
Spanish mulato, mulata
  • mulatoperson of mixed black and white descent
  • mulataperson of mixed black and white descent
Swedish mulatt
  • mulattperson of mixed black and white descent
Tagalog mulato
  • mulatoperson of mixed black and white descent
Ukrainian мула́т, мула́тка
  • мула́т (mulát)person of mixed black and white descent
  • мула́тка (mulátka)person of mixed black and white descent

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with mulatto

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

mulatto. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mulatto

MLA

“mulatto.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mulatto. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mulatto,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mulatto.

Source: mulatto on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.