Mules are slightly smaller than their horse parent, and when they grow they share traits of both a donkey (the long ears), and the horse (color, tail, etc.). A Mule in the grass.
For example, a 2014 Ford F-150 is considered a half ton truck but most variants can carry a lot more than 1,000 pounds in the bed. Since these terms are probably not going away any time soon, it's best just to think of them as smaller, mediumest, and more than medium.. (Pause for laughter).
The vehicles shown below are base models with the highest capacity, and without all the bells and whistles. Therefore, any fancy half-ton truck's tow ratings will be less than what is shown below. As truck weight increases, the towing capacity will decrease. 4X4 trucks will have lower tow ratings due to the added weight of additional components.