Question
Updated on
16 Dec 2019
- Simplified Chinese (China)
-
English (US)
-
Korean
Closed question
Question about English (US)
What does fiddle around mean?
What does fiddle around mean?
Answers
16 Dec 2019
Featured answer
- English (US)
Fiddle around is an idiom.
It means to waste time doing unimportant things.
*********
It’s an odd phrase actually.
A fiddle is a musical instrument- it is a violin.
To fiddle - is to play the instrument.
To play the violin ( or fiddle) takes a lot of skill and practice
and isn’t a waste of time. It can lead to beautiful music.
But we have a number of idioms with the word “ fiddle”
that turn the activity of playing
into something of no consequence:
He fiddled while Rome burned.
It seems to be saying building a house with a saw, nails and hammer is more important than playing this instrument.
It’s a bit puzzling how this idiom got made.
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- English (US)
to spend time in an activity that does not have a real purpose
Ex: he isn't reading his book. He's just tapping on it.
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- English (US)
Fiddle around is an idiom.
It means to waste time doing unimportant things.
*********
It’s an odd phrase actually.
A fiddle is a musical instrument- it is a violin.
To fiddle - is to play the instrument.
To play the violin ( or fiddle) takes a lot of skill and practice
and isn’t a waste of time. It can lead to beautiful music.
But we have a number of idioms with the word “ fiddle”
that turn the activity of playing
into something of no consequence:
He fiddled while Rome burned.
It seems to be saying building a house with a saw, nails and hammer is more important than playing this instrument.
It’s a bit puzzling how this idiom got made.
Highly-rated answerer
Was this answer helpful?
- Simplified Chinese (China)
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