What does "monkey" mean?

1. (the animal) a small animal with a long tail that lives in hot countries and climbs trees. 2. (a playful person) a person, especially a child, who is very active or likes to play tricks. 3. (money amount) a slang word for five hundred pounds. 4. (an addiction) a strong need for a drug or a bad habit that is hard to stop. 5. (to meddle or play) to play with something or try to fix it in a way that might break it.

monkey — meaning, definition & examples

Word

01the animal

A2 · Elementary Countable noun

n. a small animal with a long tail that lives in hot countries and climbs trees.

n. any member of the clade Simiiformes, excluding the Hominoidea (apes), typically characterised by a tail and arboreal habits.

“We saw a monkey swinging through the trees at the zoo yesterday.”

“The researchers observed the monkey using a primitive tool to extract insects from the bark of the mahogany tree.”

Synonyms

primatesimian

02a playful person

B1 · Intermediate Countable noun Informal

n. a person, especially a child, who is very active or likes to play tricks.

n. an informal and often affectionate term for a mischievous or playful person, particularly a child.

“Come here, you little monkey, and put your shoes on.”

“The teacher couldn't help but smile at the little monkey who had hidden her whiteboard markers as a prank.”

Synonyms

rascalscampimp

03money amount

C1 · Advanced Countable noun British English · Slang

n. a slang word for five hundred pounds.

n. a slang term representing the sum of five hundred pounds sterling.

“He sold his old car for a monkey.”

“The dealer offered him a monkey for the watch, but he knew it was worth significantly more on the open market.”

Teaching tip

This is very specific to London/UK slang; learners should be aware of it but avoid using it in professional contexts.

04an addiction

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Informal · Slang

n. a strong need for a drug or a bad habit that is hard to stop.

n. a persistent drug addiction or a psychological compulsion, often used in the phrase 'a monkey on one's back'.

“He finally got the monkey off his back and stayed sober for a year.”

“The debt had become a monkey on his back, preventing him from making any long-term investments or career changes.”

Synonyms

addiction habit compulsion

05to meddle or play

B2 · Upper Intermediate Informal

v. to play with something or try to fix it in a way that might break it.

v. to meddle, tinker, or interfere with something in a casual or unskilled manner; often takes the preposition 'with'.

“Don't monkey with the television settings or you will lose the picture.”

“He spent the entire afternoon monkeying around with the engine, though he lacked the technical expertise to actually repair the fault.”

Usage

Usually used as 'monkey around' or 'monkey with'.

Synonyms

tinker fidget mess

Uncertain: * May be derived from monk + -ey (diminutive suffix), or borrowed from Middle Low German Moneke, the name of the son of Martin the Ape in Reynard the Fox (which may represent an unattested colloquial Middle Low German moneke, *moneken), itself of uncertain origin: ** Possibly derived from a Romance term represented by Late Middle French monne (whence Modern French mone (“monkey”)) or earlier Old French monnekin (“monkey”), originally Monnekin, the name of a monkey in Li Dis d'Entendement. Compare also Old French and Middle French monin (“monkey”). *** The French terms may have been borrowed from Italian monna (“monkey”), from Old Spanish mona (“female monkey”), itself a shortening of mamona, variant of maimón, from Arabic مَيْمُون (maymūn, “baboon”)). *** However, Old French monnekin may alternatively be unrelated to the other terms, instead being a borrowing of Early Middle Dutch mannekin (a diminutive of man, literally “little human”), and if so monkey is a doublet of mannequin; see modern Dutch manneken.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

ape primate