[Ads-l] "Monkey this up"

[Margaret Lee]

In the African American community, I've always heard it as "monk up," meaning to mess something up.  Or that something is "monked up,"   meaning it is messed up, perhaps to avoid saying "fucked up."  Nevertheless, it is another example of how AAE speakers tend to shorten mainstream words and phrases for their own use, or perhaps hear them differently given the AAE oral culture legacy.
--Margaret Lee
   On ‎Wednesday‎, ‎August‎ ‎29‎, ‎2018‎ ‎01‎:‎12‎:‎26‎ ‎PM‎ ‎EDT, Bonnie Taylor-Blake <b.taylorblake at GMAIL.COM> wrote:  
 
 Ah, thanks, Garson, for these instances of this specific construction
("monkey [things] up"). This data compares well with DeSantis's usage.

(Thanks too to Jacob and David for their replies.)

-- Bonnie

On Wed, Aug 29, 2018 at 1:04 PM ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
wrote:

Bonnie: Here are instances of "monkeying things up" in 1953, 1983, and
> 1995 (please double-check for errors).
>
> Date: December 17, 1953
> Newspaper: The Owensboro Inquirer (Messenger-Inquirer)
> Newspaper Location: Owensboro, Kentucky
> Quote Page 1
> Database: Newspapers.com
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> So--though I hate to let you in on my "secret"--I must explain and
> apologize for my absence. I've been out with the weatherman, monkeying
> things up. We turned some valves, pulled some levers, pushed some
> pedals and here it came--snow, icicles, zippy winds-followed by
> Goodfellows bearing gifts
> [End excerpt]
>
> Date: July 18, 1983
> Newspaper: Chicago Tribune
> Location: Chicago, Illinois
> Database: Newspapers.com
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> "The company is running smoothly, they have a good team, and they're
> in good businesses," said one analyst, who requested anonymity. "The
> last thing in the world they need is someone coming in from the
> outside and monkeying things up."
> [End excerpt]
>
> Year: 1995
> Book: SQL for Dummies
> Author: Allen G. Taylor
> Publisher: IDG Books Worldwide
> Quote Page (Text seems to be on back cover)
> Database: Google Books Snippet; should be verified with hardcopy
> [Begin excerpt]
>
> . Keep your database secure with access and function control commands
> that allow multiple users to share data resources without monkeying
> things up
> . Plus, Allen's top ten lists:
> . Ten common mistakes made in defining databases
> . Ten ways to make ...
> [End excerpt]
>
>

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