fiddle.
A violin, a small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin, shoulder, chest or on the upper thigh and played with a bow (see also usage notes below).
Meaning & usage
A violin, a small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin, shoulder, chest or on the upper thigh and played with a bow (see also usage notes below).
When I play it like this, it's a fiddle; when I play it like that, it's a violin.
Any of various other bowed stringed instruments, particularly those of the violin family when played non-classically.
A violinist, or fiddler, in a band.
He is first fiddle in the band.
Something resembling a violin, or fiddle, in shape A dock (Rumex pulcher) with leaves supposed to resemble the musical instrument.
Something resembling a violin, or fiddle, in shape A long pole pulled by a draft animal to drag loose straw, hay, etc.
Something resembling a violin, or fiddle, in shape A rack for drying pottery after glazing.
A clown; an unserious person entertaining a group.
Unskillful or unartful behavior, particularly when showy and superficially pleasing. A scam; a fraud or swindle.
There was some kind of fiddle going on at that company, and several of the directors were arrested.
Unskillful or unartful behavior, particularly when showy and superficially pleasing. A workaround; a quick and less than perfect solution for some flaw or problem.
That parameter setting is just a fiddle to make the lighting look right.
Unskillful or unartful behavior, particularly when showy and superficially pleasing. An act of tinkering, playing around, or fidgeting with something.
Any rail or device that prevents items from sliding off a table, stove, etc. in rough water.
An arrest warrant.
A watchman's rattle.
A trifling amount.
Done at a fiddle.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English fithele, from Old English *fiþele, from Proto-West Germanic *fiþulā, from Proto-Germanic *fiþulǭ (“fiddle”), of uncertain etymology. Some contest that the Germanic terms are borrowed variations of Late Latin vitula (see viola); others contest that the word has a separate origin within Germanic languages, and still others believe that the Late Latin term for the stringed instrument is a borrowing from Germanic as a change of Latin t to Germanic þ is highly improbable, yet Germanic þ to Latin t is well documented (see troop, trousers, Teobaldo, etc.). Cognate with Old High German fidula (German Fiedel), Middle Dutch vedele (Dutch vedel, veel), Old Norse fiðla (Icelandic fiðla, Danish fiddel, Norwegian fela, Swedish fela). The change from /ðl/ to /dl/ in modern English is regular; compare Bedlam, staddle, swaddle (in brothel, it was prevented; see that entry for discussion).
To play the fiddle or violin, particularly in a folk or country style.
to fiddle while Rome burns
To fraudulently manipulate (records, accounts, etc.) in order to cheat or swindle.
Fred was sacked when the auditors caught him fiddling the books.
To fidget or play; to fuss; to idly amuse oneself, to act aimlessly, idly, or frivolously, particularly out of nervousness or restlessness; see also fiddle with.
Sit up straight and stop fiddling!
Synonym of tinker (“to make small adjustments or improvements”); see also fiddle with.
I don't exactly know how to fix this lawnmower; I'm really just fiddling.
To do odd jobs for money.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English fithele, from Old English *fiþele, from Proto-West Germanic *fiþulā, from Proto-Germanic *fiþulǭ (“fiddle”), of uncertain etymology. Some contest that the Germanic terms are borrowed variations of Late Latin vitula (see viola); others contest that the word has a separate origin within Germanic languages, and still others believe that the Late Latin term for the stringed instrument is a borrowing from Germanic as a change of Latin t to Germanic þ is highly improbable, yet Germanic þ to Latin t is well documented (see troop, trousers, Teobaldo, etc.). Cognate with Old High German fidula (German Fiedel), Middle Dutch vedele (Dutch vedel, veel), Old Norse fiðla (Icelandic fiðla, Danish fiddel, Norwegian fela, Swedish fela). The change from /ðl/ to /dl/ in modern English is regular; compare Bedlam, staddle, swaddle (in brothel, it was prevented; see that entry for discussion).
Synonym of fiddlesticks or euphemism for fuck.
Oh, fiddle. I left my whip in the stable.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English fithele, from Old English *fiþele, from Proto-West Germanic *fiþulā, from Proto-Germanic *fiþulǭ (“fiddle”), of uncertain etymology. Some contest that the Germanic terms are borrowed variations of Late Latin vitula (see viola); others contest that the word has a separate origin within Germanic languages, and still others believe that the Late Latin term for the stringed instrument is a borrowing from Germanic as a change of Latin t to Germanic þ is highly improbable, yet Germanic þ to Latin t is well documented (see troop, trousers, Teobaldo, etc.). Cognate with Old High German fidula (German Fiedel), Middle Dutch vedele (Dutch vedel, veel), Old Norse fiðla (Icelandic fiðla, Danish fiddel, Norwegian fela, Swedish fela). The change from /ðl/ to /dl/ in modern English is regular; compare Bedlam, staddle, swaddle (in brothel, it was prevented; see that entry for discussion).
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.