Monkey wrench
From Freepedia
The monkey wrench is an adjustable wrench not much used today. Its use has generally been replaced by the Crescent®, or adjustable–end, wrench, which has a compact head and so is more easily used in confined places.
Concerning the origin of its name, this from William Rogers, The Progressive Machinist, Theo. Audel & Company, New York, 1903:
- In his interesting article upon the genesis of machine design, Mr. W.H. Sargent spoke of the slide which moves up and down in the handle of a monkey wrench as resembling a toy monkey, and thereby drew an analogy. To this Mr. H.E. Madden writes: "The wrench is not named from this, neither is it so called because it is a handy thing to 'monkey' with. The right name is 'Moncky.' Charles Moncky, the inventor of it, sold his patent for $2,000, and invested the money in a house in Williamsburg, Kings County, N.Y., where he afterward lived."
There is evidence that adjustable wrenches and even the term monkey wrench were used long before. [1]
Also used as a verb, or in the phrase "to throw a monkey wrench into" to mean sabotage. A literary example is The Monkey Wrench Gang, a novel by Edward Abbey from 1975.
There is also a Foo Fighters single called 'Monkey Wrench'.
