Softly, softly catchee monkey

Posted by Smokey Stover on July 17, 2005

In Reply to: Softly, softly catchee monkey posted by Smokey Stover on July 16, 2005

: : : "Slowly, Slowly, catchy monkey", ok I heard this phrase versed on many occasions. TV comedy mainly. Any ideas of its origin?

: : Your question has been asked and answered here before. Please go back one page, click on the Browse the Archive link, and you'll be able to find that previous discussion.

: You'll probably find it more easily under "Softly, softly catchee monkey." And while we're talking about monkeys, there were some posts on this site indicating that "monkey" was slang for genitals. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I heard that it was slang only for female genitals. (But I'm from the back country, which perhaps doesn't count.) SS

Actually I have found vindication of a sort in the OED, which defines monkey as, among many other things, the female external genitals, the vulva. However, recently "monkey" has come to be used in expressions involving the male genitals. OED: " b. slang (orig. and chiefly U.S.). The penis. Usu. in to spank the monkey and variants: to masturbate.
[Earliest citations:] 1978 in J. E. Lighter Hist. Dict. Amer. Slang II. 578/1 Choking the monkey is the same as beating your meat. 1983 F. BEARD et al. I got Six (song) in 'Z.Z. Top' Eliminator (record), This is weird, it's time to blow, I just heard the rooster crow. I guess I'll have to spank my monkey."

I have introduced this digression purely to spread scientific knowledge. SS