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All Site ContentRomeo and JulietAct 1Scene 4
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"draw dun from the mire"
Proverb
Act 1,
Scene 4
Lines 38-41

An explanation of a proverb in myShakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 4.

Mercutio

Tut, dun's the mouse, the constable's own word.
If thou art dun, we'll draw thee from the mire,
Or — save your reverence — love, wherein thou stickest
Up to the ears. Come, we burn daylight, ho!

The word “dun” when used as a noun refers to a brown horse, and that’s how it's used in the proverbial expression that Mercutio is referencing, “to draw dun from the mire.” Mercutio says that if Romeo is a dun, then they’ll pull him out from where he’s stuck; but it’s not mud in which Romeo’s stuck, but love — up to his ears.