monkey suit
3
6.7
- noun
- /ˈmʌŋki suːt/
- Informal
:
traje de gala
- I finally found a monkey suit that fits perfectly for the party.
- wear a monkey suit
They most certainly would put on a monkey suit and pretend that they found Bigfoot footage.
- They most certainly would put on a monkey suit and pretend that they found Bigfoot footage.
Examples
-
Wearing this monkey suit?
-
The monkey suit's a nice touch, honey puss.
Fiction book (1995) -
I only have this monkey suit.
-
I thought I better put on a monkey suit.
-
- I like your new monkey suit.
-
I've gotta get out of this monkey suit.
-
Parading around in this monkey suit?
-
- Nice monkey suit.
-
He showed up to the wedding wearing a stylish monkey suit and tie.
-
Everyone laughed when he tried to dance in his oversized monkey suit.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A matching jacket and trousers worn for business or formal occasions
3
3.0
A set of matching clothes with a jacket and trousers or skirt
1
3.5
A formal men's outfit with a tailcoat and trousers for evening events
1
4.7
A matching jacket and trousers or skirt worn for work and smart events
How Formal
Surface Forms
Morphology
Although both constituents ('monkey' and 'suit') are known, the combined meaning 'a formal suit' used humorously or mockingly is not directly compositional: a literal parse suggests a suit for a monkey or a silly costume. The expression depends on cultural/derogatory metaphor (deriding formal wear), so a B1 learner who only knows the words would only partially infer the intended sense and would likely need exposure or cultural knowledge.
Etymology
Monkey suit may come from the picture of circus monkeys dressed in small human suits, a sight that looked silly and more like a costume. So people began calling real formal clothes a 'monkey suit' to joke and to mean 'a formal or ridiculous outfit'.