DIDDLING Synonyms: 159 Similar and Opposite Words

diddling

verb

present participle of diddle

as in delaying

to move or act slowly even though the hurricane was fast approaching, federal and local politicians wasted precious time diddling

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as in cheating

to rob by the use of trickery or threats an unscrupulous Broadway producer diddles little old ladies by persuading them to invest in a surefire flop

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for diddling

Verb

The daughter, Shannon Amos, faults her brother, Kelly Christopher Amos, for delaying medical care while isolating the actor from his family and friends in the years leading up to his death.

— Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026
More and more parents are delaying vaccines and citing logistics, outsourcing the decision to the parent who isn’t in the room or simply wanting more time.

— CNN Money, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of delaying

Verb

My physical study, on the floor, poking at what was there in the open field of the air, led to newfound levels of learning to process, in poems on the page, where my initial feelings of hunger came from.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
In a recent interview with OutKick Dropkick, Hefner was already poking the bear in hopes of getting eyes on his event.

— Ryan Gaydos OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of poking

Verb

Democrats have hammered on meat as well, but mainly just as one of the staples that cost more under Trump, squeezing voters’ pocketbooks.

— Nicholas Riccardi, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026
Democrats have hammered on meat as well, but mainly just as one of the staples that cost more under Trump, squeezing voters' pocketbooks.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of squeezing

Verb

He’s also been known to engage with those who might not be fans of his comedic stylings, publicly arguing back and forth with civilians, dragging them on his social media for his fans to see.

— Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 14 Oct. 2026
Beaches typically go through a seasonal cycle with powerful winter waves dragging sand out to sea and more mild summer waves depositing the sand back onshore.

— Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of dragging

Verb

LLMs are great at finding blowups that exist—at searching the infinite landscape of fluid scenarios and plucking out the precise situation that breaks the equations.

— Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2026
Fortunately, many dahlia insect problems in September can be solved by walking through the garden in the morning and plucking the offending insects off the plants by hand, then dropping them into a container of soapy water.

— Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of plucking

Verb

Abruptly moving on, like a magician preventing his audience from lingering on his last trick, Alex pulled out a tablet, holding it up to me.

— Andrew Lipstein, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2026
Also on the ground floor is Maven, serving strong espresso and nitro cold brew—plus coffee cocktails worth lingering for.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of lingering

Verb

That urgency has marked Holden’s prolific output—especially the thrilling first installment of his Supreme Magnetic series in 2025 and 2022’s Joe Frog—as the Harlem rapper uses his street-hustling past to paint an autobiographical portrait.

— Matthew Ritchie, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026
The 30-second teaser sees Jackson hustling around town, making money and recruiting his team of crooks.

— Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of hustling

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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“Diddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/diddling. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of diddling

verb

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