1
as in to fidget
to make jerky or restless movements
the executive fiddled with a pen as she impatiently waited for the meeting to begin
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to cheat
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
conscienceless grifters who had spent their lives fiddling the naive
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in nuts
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
oh, fiddle! I've heard that excuse a thousand times before
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in scam
chiefly British
an instance of the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value
the e-mail was another one of those fiddles from some supposed millionaire seeking to transfer funds out of his country
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fiddle
Keith Phipps, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
As Rossini stowed her purse in a tiny back office, a manager named Katie Atlas was onboarding a new employee, a young woman who fiddled nervously with her necklace.
—Hannah Goldfield, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 1 Apr. 2026
Conversely, the electric guitar is held back by the lack of stereo separation, as is the fiddle in turn.
—Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fiddle
Verb
But in private, Arthur advises her to exercise a little more discretion in her, um, fiddling.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
As Rossini stowed her purse in a tiny back office, a manager named Katie Atlas was onboarding a new employee, a young woman who fiddled nervously with her necklace.
—Hannah Goldfield, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
Avery Sullivan, with whom Morris also plays in the country-rock band Fust, keeps loose time on drums, tapping the snare like someone setting down coffee mugs while Libby Rodenbough scrapes out a few melody lines on her fiddle and colors empty spaces with some ghostly tremolo.
—Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 1 Apr. 2026
Conversely, the electric guitar is held back by the lack of stereo separation, as is the fiddle in turn.
—Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fiddle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fiddle
Verb
-
As the court moved to watch the KSTU-TV segment, Tyler Robinson appeared to begin fidgeting, with one of his hands moving and rubbing his fingers back and forth.—
Stepheny Price , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Michael Ruiz,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
-
When fastened, the zippers are locked in place, and pickpockets would have to fidget for a moment to get the gadget undone, giving you time to react.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The reportedly yearlong relationship is notable in that, after their split in 2015, Stocking posted and deleted tweets saying the basketball player cheated, per The New York Post.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2026
-
As OutKick previously reported, Megan broke off her relationship with the NBA star last week after accusing him of cheating.—
Amber Harding OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There was no overpowering onion, which drives me nuts in potato salad.—
Michael Deeds,
Idaho Statesman,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Everything is coated in a garlic butter salt that masks the mediocrity of the nuts.—
Alex Beggs,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In addition to depriving the government, the scam also hurt small businesses that needed access to government funds to avoid shutting their doors and laying off employees at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, DHS said.—
Preston Mizell , Louis Casiano,
FOXNews.com,
24 Apr. 2026
-
All deliver explicit pornography and, in at least one case, a scam site falsely claiming a visitor’s computer is infected and advising the visitor to pay a fee for the non-existent malware to be removed.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Trevor Bauer, the former Cy Young Award winner and MLB All-Star, tossed a no-hitter for the independent Long Island Ducks in a 13-0 win over the Lancaster Stormers on Sunday afternoon at Penn Medicine Park in Pennsylvania.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Now, some things are always going to be worth tossing—anything broken that can't be repaired, for example—but for other items, the line between keep or toss isn't so clear cut.—
Alexandra Kelly,
Martha Stewart,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
When picking your own, avoid squeezing the berries.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
25 Apr. 2026
-
That’s way too much time to squeeze into a mere 140 minutes.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The mother had died of tuberculosis the previous year and there were no siblings, which was a tremendous benefit in my mother’s eyes—no one to fill her ears with nonsense.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Apr. 2026
-
After the usual avalanche of draft-week nonsense, and enough misinformation to fog up half the league, the noise gives way to the decisions.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Pebbles twitched, branches waggled, cholla wiggled, weeds erupted then dried up and died.—
Alina Hartounian,
NPR,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The launch can also be viewed on NASA's social media platforms include Facebook, twitch and X as well as NASA+, the agency's streaming service.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fiddle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fiddle. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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