muelle

Spanish

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ˈmweʝe/ [ˈmwe.ʝe]

• IPA^(key): /ˈmweʝe/ [ˈmwe.ʝe] (Equatorial Guinea, most of Latin America and Spain)
• IPA^(key): /ˈmweʎe/ [ˈmwe.ʎe] (Andes Mountains, rustic northern Spain, Paraguay, Philippines)
• IPA^(key): /ˈmweʃe/ [ˈmwe.ʃe] (Buenos Aires and environs)
• IPA^(key): /ˈmweʒe/ [ˈmwe.ʒe] (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay)

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

 

• Rhymes: -eʝe

• Rhymes: -eʝe (Equatorial Guinea, most of Latin America and Spain)
• Rhymes: -eʎe (Andes Mountains, rustic northern Spain, Paraguay, Philippines)
• Rhymes: -eʃe (Buenos Aires and environs)
• Rhymes: -eʒe (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay)

• Syllabification: mue‧lle

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin mollem (“soft”), from earlier *molduis, from Proto-Indo-European *ml̥dus (“soft, weak”), from *mel- (“soft, weak, tender”).

Adjective

muelle m or f (masculine and feminine plural muelles)

1. soft, mild

   Synonyms: mole, blando, suave

Derived terms

• muellemente

Noun

muelle m (plural muelles)

1. spring (device made of flexible or coiled material)

   Synonym: resorte

Derived terms

• colchón de muelles
• rompemuelles
• sombrero de muelles

Related terms

• mojar
• mullir

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Catalan moll (“mole, jetty”), from Latin mōles (“mass, mole, jetty”). Cognate with English mole (“massive structure used as a breakwater or pier”). Compare Portuguese molhe.

Noun

muelle m (plural muelles)

1. wharf, quay, pier, dock

   Synonym: embarcadero

Hyponyms

• muelle de carga (“loading dock”)

Related terms

• mole

Etymology 3

Noun

muelle m (plural muelles)

1. alternative form of molle (“pepper tree”)

Further reading

• “muelle”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025