fiddlestick

American  

[fid-l-stik] / ˈfɪd lˌstɪk /

noun

1. anything; a bit.

   I don't care a fiddlestick for what they say.

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fiddlestick British  

/ ˈfɪdəlˌstɪk /

noun

1. informal a violin bow

2. any meaningless or inconsequential thing; trifle

3. an expression of annoyance or disagreement

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Etymology

Origin of fiddlestick

First recorded in 1400–50, fiddlestick is from the late Middle English word fidillstyk. See fiddle, stick ¹

Example Sentences

Cock a doodle doo, My dame has lost her shoe; My master’s lost his fiddlestick, And knows not what to do.

From The Only True Mother Goose Melodies Without Addition or Abridgement by Unknown

"Subterranean fiddlestick," burst out Jack, but the professor silenced him.

From The Border Boys Across the Frontier by Goldfrap, John Henry

The boy has had a little——" "A little fiddlestick!

From The Newcomes Memoirs of a Most Respectable Family by Thackeray, William Makepeace

“However,” he added in a cheerful tone, “I have no fears that all will be right, and that, before many evenings are over, we shall have you fingering your fiddlestick as merrily as ever.”

From True Blue by Kingston, William Henry Giles

"Cat's foot, fiddlestick, folderol, fudge!" remarked Mrs. Tree, blandly.

From Mrs. Tree by Richards, Laura Elizabeth Howe