1
as in addiction
a physiological need for certain drugs
I've got this monkey on my back, and going to detox is the only way to get it off
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in devil
an appealingly mischievous person
come back here, you little monkey!
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of monkey
Michael Haag, Dallas News, 10 Oct. 2022
With supply running low toward the end of most evenings, savvy bun fanatics don’t monkey around, routinely calling ahead to request an extra skillet of rolls set aside just for them. Ettan.
—Valerie Demicheva and Flora Chang, San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 2021
Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Kimmel came back to his ABC late-night show on September 23 following a weeklong suspension on Tuesday night, all while wearing a monkey suit alongside Guillermo in a banana costume.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for monkey
Noun
The Bears will be prepared for the environment, but getting that Morgantown monkey off their back will take a lot more than imagined.
—Michael Haag, Dallas News, 10 Oct. 2022
With supply running low toward the end of most evenings, savvy bun fanatics don’t monkey around, routinely calling ahead to request an extra skillet of rolls set aside just for them. Ettan.
—Valerie Demicheva and Flora Chang, San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 2021
Verb
Also avoid bats, monkeys and forest antelope, and do not enter caves or mines where bats may live.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Kimmel came back to his ABC late-night show on September 23 following a weeklong suspension on Tuesday night, all while wearing a monkey suit alongside Guillermo in a banana costume.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for monkey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for monkey
Noun
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Twice a week, Manheim provides vital insights and comic relief from guests recounting their darkest addiction moments.—
Shirley Halperin,
Rolling Stone,
1 Oct. 2025
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The pair’s fight is fueled by the mundane (a busted dinner party) and the profound (Mark’s addiction, Dawn’s codependence, the constant pressure of professional fighting).—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But this is no case study in the evils of devil-worshipping musicians.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
29 Sep. 2025
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Whether or not Alice lived happily ever after, Gertrude seems to have done so, at least once her devils were banished by inscrutability.—
Judith Thurman,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Critics accused him of aping Farage’s rhetoric and warned that Labour could lose votes to the left in trying to court the right.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
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Ryback shows the younger man's relaxation-as-growth around impressive set pieces, including a segment of aping famed concert pianists Alfred Brendel and Glenn Gould as well as Hoffman's blistering rant after a visit to Dachau.—
Jim Higgins,
jsonline.com,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
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In the process of the deal going bad, Vince presumably kills a man with his car, but since it’s never mentioned again during the course of the series, he’s allowed to be treated as a lovable rascal.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Sep. 2025
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The former child actors have grown up since their go-kart derby days on-screen — some have even welcomed their own little rascals off-screen.—
Keith Langston,
People.com,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Young Frankenstein, released in 1974, is considered a comedy classic and parodied monster movies of the 1930s, Universal’s Frankenstein films in particular.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Sep. 2025
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Katie Couric is parodying Sydney Sweeney’s controversial American Eagle jeans ad for a good cause.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The rogue planet, which does not orbit any star, is called Cha 1107-7626 and is outside of our solar system, 620 light-years from Earth in the Chamaeleon constellation.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
2 Oct. 2025
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Their findings indicate that the formation of at least some rogue planets may bear a similarity to that of stars.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Inevitably, someone ended up swinging a quilt around to mimic the great snake’s darting heads and churning coils.—
Seamus Sullivan
September 29,
Literary Hub,
29 Sep. 2025
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Those cuts wound up mimicking what a diamond looks in its natural state.—
James Manso,
Footwear News,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Oktoberfest specials include items for all times of the day, such as brat and eggs for breakfast; Pretzel Burgers and Pretzel Bites with Bock Beer cheese for lunch or dinner; and Pumpkin Maple Crunch Muffins for dessert.—
Fielding Buck,
Oc Register,
18 Sep. 2025
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After Wisconsin, is Ohio State the second-best brat-eating school in the conference?—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Monkey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monkey. Accessed 4 Oct. 2025.
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