monkey
monk·ey/ˈmʌŋki/noun, verb
monkey is spelled M-O-N-K-E-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables (monk·ey). It appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,347th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, monkey means “A member of the clade Simiiformes other than those in the clade Hominoidea containing apes, generally (but not universally) distinguished by small…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of monkey is monkeys; Wiktionary also lists monkies (obsolete).
How many letters and syllables are in monkey?
| Letters | 6: M-O-N-K-E-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: monk·ey |
| In writing | 12 times per million words; the 6,347th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is monkey?
Monkey appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,347th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce monkey?
- US /ˈmʌŋki/
- /ˈmʊŋki/
Monkey has 2 syllables, split monk·ey in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-monkey.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with monkey?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as monkey from its last stressed vowel (/ʌŋki/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of monkey
- monkeys plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- monkeying participle, present
- monkeyed participle, past
- monkied participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does monkey mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A member of the clade Simiiformes other than those in the clade Hominoidea containing apes, generally (but not universally) distinguished by small size, tails, and cheek pouches.
He had been visiting an area zoo when a monkey swung from its tree perch, swiped his glasses and hurled them into a hippo hole.
- 2
Any simian, including humans.
- 3
proscribedAny simian primate other than hominids; any monkey or ape.
Chimpanzees are known to form bands to hunt and kill other monkeys.
- 4
informaloffensiveA naughty or mischievous person, especially a child.
Stop misbehaving, you cheeky little monkey!
- 5
slangThe person in the motorcycle sidecar in sidecar racing.
- 6
derogatorySynonym of idiot: a person of minimal intelligence.
- 7
derogatorySynonym of uggo: an unattractive person, especially one whose face supposedly resembles a monkey's.
- 8
derogatoryslangSynonym of puppet: a person dancing to another's tune, a person controlled or directed by another.
No, no, no, not you. I want to talk to the organ grinder, not the monkey.
verb
- 1
informalTo meddle; to mess (with).
Please don't monkey with the controls if you don't know what you're doing.
- 2
To mimic; to ape.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Monkey in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense primate:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | singe, guenon |
| German | Affe, Äffin |
| Portuguese | macaco, símio, mono |
| Spanish | mono, chango, mico, simio, jimio, befo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.