1
as in fidgeted
to make jerky or restless movements
the executive fiddled with a pen as she impatiently waited for the meeting to begin
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cheated
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
conscienceless grifters who had spent their lives fiddling the naive
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fiddled
But what does some scientist know about eating fruit, of all things, when your hamstring feels like it’s being fiddled by Satan?
—
Dan England, Outside, 5 Feb. 2026
As Rossini stowed her purse in a tiny back office, a manager named Katie Atlas was onboarding a new employee, a young woman who fiddled nervously with her necklace.
—Hannah Goldfield, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Communities across the globe probably independently fiddled their way towards the invention of proto lip balms over and over.
—Mark Hay, Popular Science, 13 Aug. 2025
Dan England, Outside, 5 Feb. 2026
As Rossini stowed her purse in a tiny back office, a manager named Katie Atlas was onboarding a new employee, a young woman who fiddled nervously with her necklace.
—Hannah Goldfield, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Communities across the globe probably independently fiddled their way towards the invention of proto lip balms over and over.
—Mark Hay, Popular Science, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fiddled
Verb
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One woman ordered some home furniture while two children fidgeted nearby.—
David Lyons,
Sun Sentinel,
23 Mar. 2026
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Between each dance was an excruciating silence during which network-TV producers monitored and reset their equipment while the men fidgeted onstage like excitable children.—
Rebecca Jennings,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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But no matter the prodding, Terminus never wanted the patrons to feel cheated, so the games, while tricky, were winnable, and the prizes reasonable and fair.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 May 2026
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Every town has its nostalgic spots—ice cream shops, deli counters, old-school diners—that seem to have cheated time.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
12 May 2026
Verb
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This recipe shows the humble white button mushroom’s versatility in a savory sauce thickened with heavy cream and flavored with garlic and shallots and tossed with chicken meatballs.—
Tribune News Service,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 May 2026
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The pork is served over a bed of spaghetti tossed with fresh arugula, whose peppery bite adds a bright, fresh contrast.—
Linda Gassenheimer,
Boston Herald,
20 May 2026
Verb
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The aftermath of one of Otto’s decisions gives Beever as Léna some rich material to work through, but strands Machado-Graner to an extent, including in a short subplot that feels like it was plucked from an entirely different screenplay.—
Josh Slater-Williams,
IndieWire,
20 May 2026
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Pamela Anderson’s progression from over-plucked and busty to fresh-faced and gracefully aging on the red carpet is evidence of culture’s exhaustion with excess.—
Sarah Wang,
PEOPLE,
16 May 2026
Verb
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My jaw twitched uncontrollably.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 May 2026
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Pebbles twitched, branches waggled, cholla wiggled, weeds erupted then dried up and died.—
Alina Hartounian,
NPR,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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As more families feel squeezed by rising costs and growing debt, credit counseling might offer a path forward.—
Joshua Sidorowicz,
CBS News,
20 May 2026
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Apply rooting hormone if desired, then wrap the area tightly with damp sphagnum moss that has been soaked for several hours and squeezed to remove any extra moisture.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
19 May 2026
Verb
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Belloumi’s 64th-minute strike with his left foot broke the deadlock in the second game of the two-leg affair and Gelhardt made sure with a low shot that squirmed past the Millwall goalkeeper.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 May 2026
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His Japanese guest, usually a paragon of diplomatic cool, visibly squirmed.—
Andreas Kluth,
Twin Cities,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Napoleon Solo hustled to first place at the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, coming out on top against 13 other horses in what is the race's biggest field in 15 years.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
16 May 2026
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Dominguez hustled back to the wall and made a spectacular catch, but crashed incredibly hard into the wall.—
Ryan Canfield,
FOXNews.com,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fiddled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fiddled. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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