macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of a genus (Macaca) of chiefly Asian monkeys typically having a sturdy build and including some short-tailed or tailless forms

especially : rhesus monkey

Illustration of macaque

Examples of macaque in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That year, 70% of Mauritius’s macaques that went to the U.S. came from Bioculture. —Byrefael Kubersky, science.org, 20 Mar. 2025

Species include marmosets, cynomolgus and rhesus macaques, African Greens, and several New World species. —Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 10 Nov. 2024

Residents in a South Carolina town were advised to close their windows and doors after 43 rhesus macaque monkeys escaped a testing facility Thursday. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Fox News, 8 Nov. 2024

By 2001, the company was exporting a few thousand macaques each year for scientific research. —Byrefael Kubersky, science.org, 20 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French, from Portuguese macaco, from kaku mangabey, plural makaku, in one or more Bantu languages of Gabon and Congo

First Known Use

1757, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing macaque

• crab-eating macaque
• long-tailed macaque
• stump-tailed macaque

Rhymes for macaque

• alcock
• beanstalk
• bedrock
• boardwalk
• catwalk
• cornstalk
• crosswalk
• deadlock
• feedstock
• fetlock
• flintlock
• goshawk

Kids Definition

macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of various monkeys mostly from Asia that includes some with either short or no tails

especially : rhesus monkey

Etymology

French, from Portuguese macaco, from makaku, plural of kaku, name for an African monkey in one or more Bantu languages of Gabon and Congo

Medical Definition

macaque

noun

ma·​caque mə-ˈkak  -ˈkäk 

: any of numerous short-tailed Old World monkeys of the genus Macaca and related genera chiefly of southern Asia

especially : rhesus monkey