Find the synonyms or antonyms of a word
Antonyms for monkey with
Grammar : Verb |
Spell : muhng-kee |
Phonetic Transcription : ˈmʌŋ ki |
Definition of monkey with
Origin :- 1520s, likely from an unrecorded Middle Low German *moneke or Middle Dutch *monnekijn, a colloquial word for "monkey," originally a diminutive of some Romanic word, cf. French monne (16c.); Middle Italian monnicchio, from Old Italian monna; Spanish mona "ape, monkey." In a 1498 Low German version of the popular medieval beast story "Roman de Renart" ("Reynard the Fox"), Moneke is the name given to the son of Martin the Ape; transmission of the word to English might have been via itinerant entertainers from the German states.
- The Old French form of the name is Monequin (recorded as Monnekin in a 14c. version from Hainault), which could be a diminutive of some personal name, or it could be from the general Romanic word, which may be ultimately from Arabic maimun "monkey," literally "auspicious," a euphemistic usage because the sight of apes was held by the Arabs to be unlucky [Klein]. The word would have been influenced in Italian by folk etymology from monna "woman," a contraction of ma donna "my lady."
- Monkey has been used affectionately for "child" since c.1600. As a type of modern popular dance, it is attested from 1964. Monkey business attested from 1883. Monkey suit "fancy uniform" is from 1886. Monkey wrench is attested from 1858; its figurative sense of "something that obstructs operations" is from the notion of one getting jammed in the gears of machinery (cf. spanner in the works). To make a monkey of someone is attested from 1900. To have a monkey on one's back "be addicted" is 1930s narcotics slang, though the same phrase in the 1860s meant "to be angry." There is a story in the Sinbad cycle 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. In 1890s British slang, to have a monkey up the chimney meant "to have a mortgage on one's house." The three wise monkeys ("see no evil," etc.) are attested from 1926.
- As in intercede : verb mediate
- As in obstruct : verb prevent, restrict
- As in trifle : verb toy with; mess around
Synonyms for monkey with
- advocate
- amuse oneself
- arbitrate
- arrest
- bar
- barge in
- barricade
- be insincere
- block
- butt in
- check
- choke
- clog
- close
- congest
- coquet
- crab
- curb
- cut off
- dabble
- dally
- dawdle
- dilly-dally
- doodle
- drag one's feet
- fidget
- fill
- flirt
- fool
- fool around
- fool with
- foul up
- fribble
- fritter
- frustrate
- futz around
- get in the way
- hamper
- hamstring
- hang up
- hide
- hinder
- hold up
- horse around
- idle
- impede
- indulge in
- inhibit
- interfere
- intermediate
- interpose
- interrupt
- intervene
- intrude
- lead on
- loiter
- lollygag
- lounge
- mask
- mess with
- misuse
- mix in
- monkey
- monkey with
- negotiate
- obscure
- occlude
- palter
- philander
- play
- play games with
- play with
- plead
- plug
- potter
- putter
- reconcile
- restrain
- retard
- sandbag
- shield
- shut off
- slow down
- speak
- squander
- stall
- step in
- stonewall
- stop
- stopper
- string along
- stymie
- terminate
- throttle
- thwart
- toy
- trammel
- twiddle
- use up
- wanton
- waste
- waste time
- weigh down
- wink at
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019