make a monkey out of

English

Alternative forms

• make a monkey of

Pronunciation

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Verb

make a monkey out of (third-person singular simple present makes a monkey out of, present participle making a monkey out of, simple past and past participle made a monkey out of)

1. (idiomatic, transitive) To cause a person, group, or action to appear foolish or inferior; to subject someone or something to ridicule.
   • 1835, James Fenimore Cooper, The Monikins, ch. 10:

     The rough old sealer swore some terrible oaths, protesting "that he would not make a monkey of himself, by appearing in this garb."

   • 1960, "Vive la R," Time, 30 May:

     Across France last week, doctors were trying to make a monkey of the government-controlled health-insurance system. . . . Doctors in many départements went on informal strike.

   • 2008, Zafar Altaf, "Changing the resource base in farming," Pakistan Dawn, 28 Apr. (retrieved 4 Oct. 2008):

     It is very difficult to make a monkey out of policy makers who can read and write and can argue a case logically.