muleta

noun

mu·​le·​ta mü-ˈlā-tə 

myü-

: a small cloth attached to a short tapered stick and used by a matador in place of the large cape during the final stage of a bullfight

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Would a toreador be insulted when the bull responds to the muleta? —Leah Garchik, SFChronicle.com, 19 June 2019

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, crutch, muleta, diminutive of mula she-mule, from Latin, feminine of mulus mule

First Known Use

1791, in the meaning defined above