a barrel of monkeys
idiom (informal)

- very funny and enjoyable

Merriam-Webster

—
PHRASE ORIGIN

“Barrel of Monkeys” is a game that was released in 1965 by Lakeside Toys. Created by Leonard Marks and Milton Dinhofer, the prototype of this game was originally called “Chimp to Chimp”.

To play the game, "Dump monkeys onto table. Pick up one monkey by an arm. Hook other arm through a second monkey's arm. Continue trying to make the longest chain possible. Your turn is over when a monkey is dropped”.

—
MOLECULAR MONKEYS

The unusual characteristic of the monkey shape is that its arms, legs, hands, and feet are able to twist around each other to form many stable links. In this, they resemble protein molecules which can also link together in many ways. The resulting assemblies simulate biologically important structures - the monkeys provide a great 'hands-on' approach to understanding these principles.

—
IDIOMATIC, METAPHORICAL SYNONYMS

- very amusing

a barrel of laughs, A BARREL OF MONKEYS, a hoot and a half, belly-laughing, bursting/crying/falling about with laughter, cracking up, custard-pie, funnier than a circus, gales of laughter, giggling like a schoolgirl, gut-busting, in stitches, knee-slapping, laugh-a-minute, laughing my ass off (LMAO), laugh out loud (LOL), rib-tickling, rip-roaring, rolling on the floor laughing (in the aisles), side-splitting, tears of laughter, tickled to death

—
SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“We should invite Florian, he’s as much fun as A BARREL OF MONKEYS.”

—
HERZLICHEN DANK to all readers helping me keep OWAD alive with single or monthly donations.

Every month, I spend evening and weekend hours with my family researching and writing your daily OWAD. It remains FREE, AD-free, and ALIVE thanks to voluntary donations from appreciative readers.

If you aren’t already, please also consider supporting us - even the equivalent of a single cup of coffee a month will help us cover mailing, site hosting, and maintenance costs. Just head over to DonorBox:

https://donorbox.org/please-become-a-friend-of-owad-5-3

or bank transfer to Paul Smith
IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40
Please use your email-address as ‘Verwendungszweck’

Thank you,
Paul