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fiddle-faddle

[ fid-l-fad-l ]
/ ˈfɪd lˌfæd l /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fiddle-faddle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

nonsense.
something trivial.

verb (used without object), fid·dle-fad·dled, fid·dle-fad·dling.

to fuss with trifles.

interjection

(used to express irritation, impatience, etc.)

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RELATED WORDS

hogwash, frippery, froth, triviality, bunk, baloney, frivolity, bull, malarkey, minutia, trifle, flummery

Nearby words

  1. fiddle bow,
  2. fiddle pattern,
  3. fiddle while rome burns,
  4. fiddle-back,
  5. fiddle-de-dee,
  6. fiddle-footed,
  7. fiddleback,
  8. fiddleback spider,
  9. fiddlehead,
  10. fiddler

Origin of fiddle-faddle

First recorded in 1570–80; gradational compound based on fiddle
Related formsfid·dle-fad·dler, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for fiddle-faddle

British Dictionary definitions for fiddle-faddle

fiddle-faddle

/ (ˈfɪdəlˌfædəl) /

noun, interjection

trivial matter; nonsense

verb

(intr) to fuss or waste time, esp over trivial matters
Derived Formsfiddle-faddler, noun

Word Origin for fiddle-faddle

C16: reduplication of fiddle
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fiddle-faddle

fiddle-faddle

1570s (n.); 1630s (v.), apparently a reduplication of obsolete faddle "to trifle."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper