fiddler
Americannoun
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a person who plays the fiddle, esp in folk music
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See fiddler crab
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a person who wastes time or acts aimlessly
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informal a cheat or petty rogue
Etymology
Origin of fiddler
before 1100; Middle English, Old English fithelere; cognate with Dutch vedelaar, German Fiedler. See fiddle, -er 1
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.
She joined a list which has included amongst others the 2022 winner fiddler Eryn Rae, pianist Michael Biggins, piper Ali Levack, fiddler Benedict Morris and singer Hannah Rarity.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 2024
"Without our traditions," the musical's protagonist Tevye says at the end of the song, "Our lives would be as shaky as . . . as a fiddler on the roof!"
From Salon • Jul. 8, 2023
A nearby fiddler struggled to show his first blind student how to hold the bow or the instrument.
From New York Times • Feb. 28, 2023
The couple also spearheaded a second career for star Texas fiddler Benny Thomasson, who had quietly moved to Washington state.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 15, 2023
The fiddler crab, that small and picturesque crustacean whose hordes move over mud flats or sand flats like grazing cattle, has no defense against the sprayers.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
