さる・猿saru[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. nounmonkey (esp. the Japanese macaque, Macaca fuscata); ape; non-human primate
   何なん匹ひきかのサルが木きに登のぼっているのを見みた。↗

   I saw some monkeys climbing the tree.
2. nounsly person
3. nounidiot; hick
4. nounsliding wooden bolt (for holding a door or window shut)
5. nounclasp used to control the height of a pot-hook
6. nounbathhouse prostitute

• SynonymモンキーNeutralLoanword used mostly in product names and compounds like 「モンキーレンチ」; in everyday speech 「猿」 is the normal word.
• Synonym猿猴えんこうWrittenWritten, old-fashioned word for monkeys and apes as a group, often gibbons; also a name for the kappa.
• Relatedエテ公えてこうCasualColloquial nickname with a teasing or contemptuous edge; used instead of 「さる」 to avoid its unlucky homophony with 「去る」 (to leave).
• Related山猿やまざるCasualWild monkeys living in the mountains; also a scornful word for ill-mannered people from the countryside.

For monkeys in general, 「猿」 is the word. Use 「モンキー」 in product names and compounds, 「エテ公」 for a teasing nickname, 「山猿」 for wild monkeys or, as an insult, a country bumpkin; 「猿猴」 is written and archaic.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. さる。哺乳ほにゅう動物霊どうぶつれい長目ちょうもくからヒトを除のぞいた動物どうぶつ。日本語にほんごの用字ようじとしては、有尾ゆうび・無尾むびを問とわず用もちいる。