1
as in hijinks
usually monkeyshines plural
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
hockey players who are known for their monkeyshines on and off the ice
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in trick
usually monkeyshines plural
a playful or mischievous act intended as a joke
on the alert for paleontological monkeyshines ever since the unmasking of Piltdown man
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for monkeyshine
Noun
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In the weeks leading up to Halloween, Newman continues to share wig tips ahead of partying and trick-or-treating.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025 -
Advertisement Apple and caramel dips Apples are a top-tier fall fruit and a healthy, on-theme choice for trick-or-treaters.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Their relationship, tentative, intimate, and defiant, lingers long after the satirical skewering of male buffoonery has faded.—
Leila Latif,
IndieWire,
5 Sep. 2025
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He’s been tinkering with this messaging on and off since damn near the start of the century, when his criticism of the genre shifted from the power-holding executives (both white and Black) of the music industry who were profiting off buffoonery, a la Bamboozled, to rap music itself.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
15 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Previously the June Squibb caper Thelma was Magnolia Pictures’ widest release with an opening of 1,290 theaters in June 2024.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
24 Oct. 2025
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True to form, Reichardt doesn’t deliver a slick caper.—
Lisa Wong Macabasco,
Vogue,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Butch Baker, who was Henry County sheriff until 2014, recalled an incident in which Bertram was accused of inappropriate horseplay at the community corrections office.—
Tony Cook,
IndyStar,
2 July 2025
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The action anime feature for everyone who couldn’t get enough of the horseplay in The Two Towers has finally cantered onto Max.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
1 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Schitt’s Creek made the calamitous Rose family famous, and their escapades can now be found in one place in Canada.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
20 Oct. 2025
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In Ibsen’s play, set solely in two contiguous rooms in the Tesmans’ villa, George comes home after a highly eventful night of escapades that are left unseen and merely described to Hedda.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
17 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park has some monkey business going on: updates to its primate and other animal habitats, educational buildings and pathways.—
Lillian Ashworth,
Oc Register,
18 July 2025
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Do a direct export from the original system—no monkey business.—
James Bickerton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 July 2025
Noun
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With over 300 episodes to shoot, there was time for some practical jokes.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Sep. 2025
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This is all some practical joke that’s being played on me.—
Michael Nied,
People.com,
26 Aug. 2025
Noun
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As for Abdul-Mateen, the clownery will resume for him on Broadway.—
Jessica Wang,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2022
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Tirhakah Love is a senior writer at New York Magazine and the host of the new evening newsletter Dinner Party, a daily email that touches on all things entertainment — that means film, television, music, tech, and gaming — plus politics and corporate clownery.—
Vulture,
Vulture,
29 Apr. 2022
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Cite this Entry
“Monkeyshine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monkeyshine. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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