as in funning
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
all that monkeying was sure to end in someone or something getting hurt
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in ornery
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for monkeying
Adjective
-
At 0-2, the Chiefs may be a little more ornery than usual.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
22 Sep. 2025 -
The goal is to capitalize on the holidays when kids will be out of school and eager to see some ornery avians.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Critics accused him of aping Farage’s rhetoric and warned that Labour could lose votes to the left in trying to court the right.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Ryback shows the younger man's relaxation-as-growth around impressive set pieces, including a segment of aping famed concert pianists Alfred Brendel and Glenn Gould as well as Hoffman's blistering rant after a visit to Dachau.—
Jim Higgins,
jsonline.com,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Jones eventually got into his joking bag, and Bleek took that opportunity to seriously set the record straight one last time.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
15 Oct. 2025
-
And their joking comments about their relationship never help the matter.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Autumn Springs is populated by finely wrought individuals, led by the indomitable Rose and her roguish friend Miller.—
Neil McRobert,
Vulture,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Funyyzo Wide-Leg Pants Inspired by Kelly Clarkson Or, consider copying Clarkson’s red-hot look with these vibrant pants that have amassed more than 5,100 perfect ratings.—
Averi Baudler,
PEOPLE,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Marasco has accused Swift and her co-defendants of copying her poetry in lyrics and visuals from multiple albums, including , , and .—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Finally, after plenty of clowning, Taylor Swift has revealed that her 12th album is on the way, titled The Life of a Showgirl.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
13 Aug. 2025
-
This is a work in which the slapstick clowning and the tricky verbal non sequiturs should be merely the surface for roiling undercurrents of anguish, futility, despair and fear.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
-
If a rascally possum does become a problem, here's how to get rid of it and keep that opossum away.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
6 Aug. 2025
-
In 1950, scientists deployed a virus called Myxoma to destroy the rascally rabbits.—
Bethany Brookshire,
Smithsonian Magazine,
8 Dec. 2022
Verb
-
Fabrics have scratched surfaces, mimicking digital glitches.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Sustainable gardening is an environmentally friendly approach that protects the earth and its inhabitants by mimicking natural ecosystems, minimizing waste and conserving resources.—
Chris McKeown,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
18 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Monkeying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/monkeying. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share