fidget
Americanverb (used without object)
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to move about restlessly, nervously, or impatiently.
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to play with something in a restless or nervous way; fiddle.
The boy kept fidgeting with the toy instead of paying attention.
verb (used with object)
noun
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Often fidgets. the condition or an instance of being nervously restless, uneasy, or impatient.
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Also fidgeter. a person who fidgets.
verb
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(intr) to move about restlessly
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to make restless or uneasy movements (with something); fiddle
he fidgeted with his pen
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(tr) to cause to fidget
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(tr) to cause to worry; make uneasy
noun
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(often plural) a state of restlessness or unease, esp as expressed in continual motion
he's got the fidgets
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a person who fidgets
Other Word Forms
- fidgetingly adverb
- fidgety adjective
- unfidgeting adjective
Etymology
Origin of fidget
First recorded in 1665–75; compare dialectal fidge “to fidget,” akin to the synonymous expressive words fitch, fig, fike; compare Old Norse fīkjast “to be eager,” Old Swedish fīkja “to be restless”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He started fidgeting, which was so unlike the impossible boy that it made Berlin suddenly nervous.
From Literature
In the studio and in meetings, Shulman has the restless energy of a kid—pacing around a room or fidgeting with a piano keyboard or bass guitar—combined with the intellectual affect of a quant.
Newby, who was being treated for a chest infection at the time, said he approached Farooq outside the maternity ward after spotting him fidgeting and looking anxious.
From BBC
That approach, she said, helped Five Below take advantage of the current craze for “squishy dumplings” — the latest popular fidget toy that the retailer has managed to cash in on.
From MarketWatch
Someone at the end of the shelves, fidgeting and staring.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
