1
as in buffoonery
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
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 monkeyshines
Noun
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Receivers have cratered seasons with me-over-we buffoonery.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
19 Mar. 2026 -
His comic material, drawn mainly from perceptive observations of everyday life, might not be broad enough buffoonery for the movies.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
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If your complexion feels dry or irritated, any Illiyoon product or treatment will pretty much do the trick.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
21 Mar. 2026
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To help break down how to apply mascara correctly, Gray shares her best methods and tricks.—
Ariana Yaptangco,
Glamour,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Jazz are 15-35, which puts them at the sixth pick if zero lottery-ball tomfoolery happens.—
Zach Harper,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
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But enough of all that tomfoolery, because there is one person on the beach who knows exactly what is about to happen!—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Instead, consider leaning into the bagels and lox concept and topping each egg with a few capers or a pinch of everything bagel seasoning.—
Karla Walsh,
Better Homes & Gardens,
15 Mar. 2026
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Soon, the childhood acquaintances are embarking on a surveillance caper, eavesdropping on a dissident pop star (Rebecca Naomi Jones).—
Dan Stahl,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Those dousings also prompted outrage from police leaders — who decried it as an inexcusable sign of disrespect, and even suggested that officers willing to walk away from that kind of horseplay should consider another line of work.—
Anthony Izaguirre,
Fortune,
26 Feb. 2026
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Yet this is truly an ensemble show, in which each performer has multiple opportunities to shine, executing some splendidly silly bits together, such as delivering CPR to a sandwich or convincingly channeling their inner tots during some post-bedtime horseplay.—
Rob Hubbard,
Twin Cities,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The show is also virtually devoid of romantic escapades, a good thing since Dumas’ novel is filled with a lot of sentimental claptrap about fighting for defenseless women’s honor or seducing virtuous maidens or going to war due to the physical beauty of a monarch.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
11 Mar. 2026
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Even if the titular exclamation point wasn’t taken straight from the theater musical, it’d be earned via the film’s consistently entertaining escapades.—
Rachel Simon,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
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As in past years, the festival will feature independent artists and companies presenting new and experimental theater, dance, clowning, music and more.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Mar. 2026
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Yes, this is the modern clowning that all the thinkpieces are thinking about.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The three titular Debras (Sandy Honig, Mitra Jouhari, and Alyssa Stonoha) live in the fake town of Lemoncurd, where their antics are absorbed into a larger background of silly madness.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2026
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In the years following, Cyrus made more headlines for harmless teenage antics.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Monkeyshines.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monkeyshines. Accessed 23 Mar. 2026.
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