fiddle English · revision 1006

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈfɪdl̩/; /ˈfɪd(ə)l/ ''(UK)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|fidle]], [[inh|ang|fiþele]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) related to [[goh|fidula]], [[nl|vedel]] and [[non|fiðla]].^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) The Germanic words are of uncertain origin;^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) they are usually traced to [[la-med|vitula|t=stringed instrument]],^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) perhaps related to Latin ''vītulārī'' “to rejoice”,^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) unless the Latin word itself came from Germanic.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) It is related to [[viol]] and [[viola]].^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A stringed musical instrument, usually the violin (c. 1205).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==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''.^(Etymonline) The verb “to play the fiddle” dates from 1377,^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) and its figurative sense “to make aimless movements, to fidget, to toy” from 1530.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) From 1604 ''fiddle'' meant “to cheat, swindle”,^(OED 1989) and the noun is chiefly British slang for a swindle.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) On ships, a ''fiddle'' is a rail that keeps things from sliding off a table in rough weather.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1205 – the instrument.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * before 1280 – ''fiddler''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1377 – verb, to play the fiddle.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1530 – verb, to fidget or toy.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1603 – ''as fit as a fiddle''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1604 – verb, to cheat or swindle.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[violin]], or any instrument of the violin family, especially as used in folk or country music.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(nautical)'' A rail or ledge that keeps dishes and other things from sliding off a table in rough weather.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(chiefly British, informal)'' A swindle or fraud.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To play the violin, or to play (a tune) on it.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To move the hands or fingers restlessly; to [[fidget]]; also, to tinker or [[tamper]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To spend time aimlessly, as in ''fiddle about'' or ''fiddle away''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To cheat or swindle, or to falsify (accounts) for dishonest gain.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==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.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}