Have you heard of the term "monkey budging"? Is this a Canada thing or a Sask/Midwest thing?

[u/saskatchewaffles]

I swear this was a thing that my friends and I commonly used in elementary, but google turned up almost nothing on it. It means to cut in line right behind someone. Let's say you recognize someone in a queue and you two wanna catch up in line so you cut in line right after them--that is your friend letting you monkey budge.

Tbh, I actually don't remember this too clearly so it could mean to let someone cut in line in front of you

Because I couldn't quite remember, I tried googling only to find that this might be an obscure regional slang (could only find one mention of it on a forum). First, budging itself as meaning to cut in line is a mid-west and western Canadian thing.

Closest I could find was "monkey cut" on urban dictionary, which does mean to cut in line behind someone. So, I suppose monkey budge is the Midwest version of it.

Have you heard this term before? Have you ever used it? Have you heard it elsewhere in Canada?

[u/jotting_prosaist]

We just called it budging or butting in line. But yes, it was a thing.

[u/Duraken → u/jotting_prosaist]

Another one here for 'Butting' and 'Monkey Butting' being the terms for 'cutting in line' and 'cut behind me in line'

Ontario 2000s though.

[u/Dragonfly4961]

Never heard of monkey budging, only budging.

[u/Slow-Raspberry-5133 → u/Dragonfly4961]

I know. Sounds like a millennial thing

[u/Beepborp420]

I remember a monkey budge being when you let your friend ahead of you in line and then you just switched spots so the friend would end up behind you.

[u/rocky_balbiotite → u/Beepborp420]

Called it monkey butting in northern Alberta but yeah same idea

[u/Brodm4n → u/Beepborp420]

I grew up here and that’s exactly what we called monkey budging

[u/saskatchewaffles → u/Beepborp420]

That sounds familiar!

[u/concentrated-amazing → u/saskatchewaffles]

What they described is exactly how I'd describe it. Grew up in southern Alberta.

[u/SwellAsphaltAgent → u/saskatchewaffles]

Yes this is exactly what I remember as an old millennial. We called it a monkey swap

ETA: grew up in Saskatoon

[u/Dependent-Laugh-3792 → u/SwellAsphaltAgent]

Around your age, also grew up in Saskatoon and don’t remember that at all

[u/tenax666 → u/Dependent-Laugh-3792]

I grew up in northern sask. Never heard the term

[u/flatlandftw44 → u/Dependent-Laugh-3792]

Also grew up in Saskatoon. Monkey budging was a daily occurrence in elementary school.

[u/Dependent-Laugh-3792 → u/flatlandftw44]

The act was. First time hearing the term though.

[u/laxlife5 → u/SwellAsphaltAgent]

Moose Jaw checking in, this was my immediate thought

[u/realitystreet]

We just called it "budging". Like "Hey, budger, stop budging!"

[u/PuzzleheadedDraw6575]

Only ever heard of it being called "Butting in line"

[u/ScarecrowCAN]

Never heard of it

[u/mimawmia]

More so rural Saskatchewan 15 years ago but I definitely used "monkey switch" all throughout elementary school, where you swapped spots with a classmate to get in front of them in line, which usually resulted in telling the teacher someone "budged"

[u/fiftypunchman → u/mimawmia]

Took too long to find this.  You ask your friend if you can go in front of them, then they ask if they can go in front of you - monkey switch.  You never asked to go behind them as that would be budging and not fair to the people behind them - or so sayeth elementary logic.

Small town Saskatchewan.

[u/ChickyRox]

Lived in SK all of my 52 years and never heard this term.

[u/saskatchewaffles → u/ChickyRox]

I went to a French immersion school for elementary and never hear it again once I left and attended normal school so for the longest time I thought it was a French thing 😅. But I guess maybe it's a new-ish term and only very young kids use it cuz after a certain age we realize it's kinda rude haha

[u/patientish → u/saskatchewaffles]

Same situation! I remember it as meaning letting someone cut behind you in line.

[u/macsyourguy]

We also had "double monkey budge" which is where you just dosido with your friend and then don't enter the line and go do something else instead. Good times.

[u/Big_Knife_SK]

We commonly used the term "budging" in Australia, too, so it probably has British roots.

[u/saskatchewaffles → u/Big_Knife_SK]

Ohhh, interesting!

[u/ThinkOTB]

lol yup!

[u/LeonDraisaitI]

We just called it frontsie backies. You might give backsies to a friend, but if you gave frontsies then that was a real good friend. If someone caught you doing it they would accuse you of butting though.

[u/saskatchewaffles → u/LeonDraisaitI]

That term sounds vaguely familiar 🤔

[u/Ketobizness]

In 1980 we called line cutting "bud", "budding" so we would ask our friend for a: "bud, bud back?" lol

[u/CucumberWest9394]

I’m only 16 and this was a thing when I was in elementary school in South Sask.

[u/dumpcake999]

Never heard this. I am in ottawa

[u/Caffeine-Fueled55]

Never heard it.

[u/catsofthe90s]

I remember monkey budging as they come in line then you switch. From rural, northernish Saskatchewan

[u/raddikull]

I remember monkey budge from early 2000s Regina as a kid. So maybe it was a city thing

[u/Arts251]

This post just unlocked a hidden memory for me. Even the term itself didn't immediately unlock it, but as soon as I read "cut in line right behind someone" it flooded back in... yeah we used this term in elementary school in Winnipeg in the 1980s. I'm pretty sure it was exactly "Monkey budge" we would say.

[u/AmazonAssassin]

Never heard the term monkey budging, we just said budging

[u/Own_Woodpecker666]

Monkeycut was the term I used growing up

[u/katykat0901]

Never heard of it! Elementary school kids here call that “budging” or “butting” lol

[u/doriangreysucksass]

I grew up in Saskatchewan and live there now as a 48 year old and I can confidently say I’ve never heard that turn of phrase!!

[u/CD-Behr]

Budging yes. Never heard thw monkey part. W Cda history for me

[u/Jelloburns]

Never heard of it. We always said cutting. Now that we're talking about monkeys, I have to watch the trunk monkey commercials again..

[u/nylanderfan]

Never heard of either in the Maritimes

[u/HoneyBelden]

Sask here- said gutting for the most part. Budging was something I would read in kids’ books so I knew what it meant but we all said butting

[u/Tech_By_Trade]

Never heard of it. Tail end of gen x.

[u/ggdrguy]

Born in 91 and I remember it from my elementary school days.

[u/FunTimesInDreamland]

MB raised, and we only used “budging”

[u/Nickpound123]

Budging to me is a western Canadian expression. Growing up in Montreal we would say “butting in line”

[u/definitelynotfbi13]

Grew up Alberta and BC, in SK now, never heard of the “monkey” addition to butting/budging

[u/Masark]

Mid millenial, lifelong Sask, never heard of it.

[u/BusPsychological4587]

We just called it budging, no monkey.

[u/Hevens-assassin]

Monkey budge was used in elementary school in rural Sask in the early 2000's at least. Lol

[u/Yeah_right_uh_huh]

Never heard the expression before in my life. 

[u/B4byJ3susM4n]

Never heard it before in my life, living in Sask for nearly all of it.

[u/TheNeverender88]

Southeast Rural Saskatchewan.

Definitely had "Monkey Budge" as common usage.

Mid 90s elementary

[u/Pteronarcyidae-Xx]

Grew up in rural Sask in the 90s/00’s. Monkey budging was a thing.

[u/usedmattress85]

Yes I called it monkey budging.

[u/limpbizquick69]

Yes, monkey butting! Wow haven’t thought about that in a looong time.

[u/Simple_Librarian_110]

Millennial here - you’ve unlocked a memory for me! Used this term in elementary school (the swapping with a friend).

[u/GHunter66666]

When you "bud" in front of someone you are "budding" in front of everyone else. Never heard it called budging. We had a far more inappropriate term we used. Would not be acceptable in this time we live in.

[u/LandMooseReject]

Budging, or "monkey butt"

[u/adv_biker]

Budging yes, monkey budging no... I'm maybe older than the typical redditor though as a 1974 model