MONKEYING AROUND Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

monkeying (around)

verb

present participle of monkey (around)

as in clowning (around)

to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior stop monkeying around in the house or you'll break something

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in fiddling (around)

to spend time in aimless activity would rather just monkey around instead of doing work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for monkeying (around)

Verb

Using unseen footage from Presley’s 1969 to 1976 Las Vegas residency, the movie plays the hits – plus The Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel – but also showcases his sense of humor, quipping with crowds and cutting up with bandmates.

— Brian Truitt, USA Today, 12 June 2026
Always cutting up and making memories.

— Hedy Phillips, PEOPLE, 8 June 2026

Definition of cutting up

Verb

Bevel was horsing around with the Reverend James Orange and Andy Young in the courtyard under King's balcony, according to Orange.

— Gail Sheehy, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
In April 2020, Iglesias shared a video of him horsing around with Lucy and Nicholas as the pair attempted to climb on his back for a ride.

— Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 19 Jan. 2026

Definition of horsing around

Verb

Zeus did not approve of his daughter fooling around with this mortal roughneck hunter and put out a hit on Orion.

— Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 8 Mar. 2026
The transition was rough for Ansari, who wasn’t fluent in English and often got in trouble for fooling around in school.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026

Definition of fooling around

Verb

In her downtime, the singer has also attended award shows, film and music festivals, and fashion shows, all while showing off an array of designer shoes.

— Karla Rodriguez, Footwear News, 31 July 2026
Like a proud zookeeper showing off the rarest specimen in his collection, Corsini rarely tries the same trick twice.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 24 July 2026

Definition of showing off

Verb

The Chicago Cubs weren’t messing around at the trade deadline.

— Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
His first two features were loose, low-budget films starring himself and made by messing around with friends; they were built on spontaneity and the belief that a movie reveals itself in the edit.

— Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 29 July 2026

Definition of messing around

Verb

President James Garfield’s assassin, Charles Guiteau, died by hanging about five months after he was convicted of murder.

— USA Today, USA Today, 17 June 2026
In 2019, city employees began hanging about 500 trick-or-treat pumpkin buckets in the trees on Main Street every October.

— Elliott Harrell, Travel + Leisure, 18 Oct. 2025

Definition of hanging about

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Browse Nearby Words

monkeying

monkeying (around)

monkeying (with)

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Style

“Monkeying (around).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monkeying%20%28around%29. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of monkeying (around)

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

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