monkey [M16th] The origin of monkey is not known, although various suggestions have been made. Historically, *ape was used as the general term for all apes and monkeys, and appears much earlier in English. People often associate monkeys with mischief and mimicry. British monkey tricks [M17th] ‘mischievous behaviour’ are monkeyshines [M19th] in the USA, the second element being a rare word for ‘disturbance’. The use of monkey business [M19th] for ‘mischievous behaviour’ seems to have come from India, where the phrase exists in other languages. If you don’t give a monkey’s you do not care at all. This phrase, recorded from the late 19th century, is a shortening of something ruder, such as don’t give a monkey’s ass or f—. The slang sense of a monkey, for £500 (or, in Australia, A$500), is much older than you might expect, going back to the 1830s, and a pony, or £25, is from the late 18th century. See also ball, cheek.