monkey business
idiom

- silly, mischievous, or deceitful acts or behaviour

- behavior that is not acceptable or is dishonest

The Cambridge Dictionary / The American Heritage Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

The word “monkey”, also monkie, munkie, munkye, is from the 1520s – it is not found in Middle English, where “ape” was the usual word. Monkey is of uncertain origin, but likely from an unrecorded Middle Low German moneke or Middle Dutch monnekijn, a colloquial word for “monkey”.

The word “monkey” has been used colloquially since the 16th century to refer not only to apes and primates, but also as an affectionate term for children (in reference to their silly-like behaviour).

“Monkey suit” is from 1876 as a type of child’s suit; by 1918 as slang for fancy dress clothes or uniform.

To “make a monkey of someone” (to make a fool of someone) is attested from 1851.

To “have a monkey on one’s back” (to be addicted) is 1930s narcotics slang. There is a story in “Sinbad the Sailor” about a tormenting ape-like creature that mounts a man’s shoulders and won’t get off, which may be the root of the term.

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MONKEY PHRASES

The word’s popularity seems to coincide with the development of animal parks in Europe and America beginning in the middle of the 19th century. Prior to that time, Europeans and Americans had little or no direct exposure to primates. But once they did, the monkey’s behaviour, which often appears to humans as silly, led to the term being synonymous with acting childish or nonsensical.

- more fun than a barrel of monkeys = a person or a group of people that are fun to be around

- brass monkey weather = used to describe extremely cold

- don’t monkey around with me = don’t try to fool me (or don’t try to trick me)

- a grease monkey - a car mechanic

- I don’t give a monkey’s = a rude way to say you are not interested in something or you don’t care about it

- Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! = an expression used when one is very surprised or amazed

- monkey around = to waste time; to fool around

- softly, softly, catchee monkey = a slow and careful way to resolve a problem

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SYNONYMS

- mischievously playful behaviour:

antics, buffoonery, capers, cheekiness, clowning, elfishness, escapades, funny business, horseplay, horsing around, joking around, messing around, misbehaviour, mischief, MONKEY BUSINESS, nonsense, pranks, puckishness, roguery, skylarking, tomfoolery

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