fuddle-duddle
Americanverb (used without object)
Etymology
Origin of fuddle-duddle
First recorded in 1970–75; used by Pierre Trudeau ( def. ) in his defense against accusations of muttering obscenities in Parliament by claiming that he had actually muttered a harmless phrase that possibly was fuddle-duddle; apparently extension of fuddle, after fuddy-duddy, though sense is unaccounted for
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 clashed with the press and with protesters, and lobbed an obscenity at Conservative M.P.s, in what became known as the “fuddle-duddle” affair.
From The New Yorker
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.