fid·dle
(fĭd́l)
[Middle English fidle, from Old English fithele.]
noun
- A violin.
- A member of the violin family.
- Nautical A guardrail used on a table during rough weather to prevent things from slipping off.
- Informal Nonsensical, trifling matters: “There are things that are important/beyond all this fiddle” (Marianne Moore)
- The act or an instance of cheating or swindling; a fraud.
verb: -dled, -dling, -dles.
intransitive verb
- To play a violin.
- To move one's fingers or hands in a nervous fashion.
- To occupy oneself in an aimless or desultory way: liked to fiddle with all the knobs and dials.
- To meddle or tamper: a reporter who fiddled with the facts.
- To commit a fraud, especially to steal from one's employer.
transitive verb
- To play (a tune) on a violin.
- To cheat or swindle.
- To alter or falsify (accounts, for example) for dishonest gain.
phrasal verbs
- fiddle away
- To waste or squander: fiddled away the morning with unnecessary tasks.
derivatives
- fid́dler
- noun
