fiddle

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɪdl̩/; /ˈfɪd(ə)l/ (UK)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English fidle, inherited from Old English fiþele,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} related to Old High German fidula, Dutch vedel and Old Norse fiðla.^[3][4][6] The Germanic words are of uncertain origin;^[4][6] they are usually traced to Medieval Latin vitula (“stringed instrument”),^[3][4][5][6] perhaps related to Latin vītulārī “to rejoice”,^[3][4][6] unless the Latin word itself came from Germanic.^[3][4] It is related to viol and viola.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

A stringed musical instrument, usually the violin (c. 1205).^[7][3]

Semantic evolution

As the violin became the proper name of the instrument, fiddle was relegated to colloquial use, helped by phrases such as fiddlesticks and fiddle-faddle.^[4] The verb “to play the fiddle” dates from 1377,^[7][3][4] and its figurative sense “to make aimless movements, to fidget, to toy” from 1530.^[7][3][4] From 1604 fiddle meant “to cheat, swindle”,^[7] and the noun is chiefly British slang for a swindle.^[2][5][6] On ships, a fiddle is a rail that keeps things from sliding off a table in rough weather.^[2][5][6][1]

Timeline

• c. 1205 – the instrument.^[7][3]
• before 1280 – fiddler.^[3]
• 1377 – verb, to play the fiddle.^[7][3]
• 1530 – verb, to fidget or toy.^[7][3][4]
• 1603 – as fit as a fiddle.^[7]
• 1604 – verb, to cheat or swindle.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A violin, or any instrument of the violin family, especially as used in folk or country music.
2. (nautical) A rail or ledge that keeps dishes and other things from sliding off a table in rough weather.
3. (chiefly British, informal) A swindle or fraud.

Verb

1. To play the violin, or to play (a tune) on it.
2. To move the hands or fingers restlessly; to fidget; also, to tinker or tamper.
3. To spend time aimlessly, as in fiddle about or fiddle away.
4. To cheat or swindle, or to falsify (accounts) for dishonest gain.

Word family

• fiddler
• fiddle away

Related words

• violin
• viol
• fiddlesticks
• fiddle-faddle

Usage notes

Wiktionary notes that the same instrument is usually called a violin in classical music and a fiddle in folk or country music.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press