as in scams
chiefly British
an instance of the use of dishonest methods to acquire something of value
the e-mail was another one of those fiddles from some supposed Nigerian millionaire seeking to transfer funds out of his country
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in fidgets
to make jerky or restless movements
the executive fiddled with a pen as she impatiently waited for the meeting to begin
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in plucks
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
conscienceless grifters who had spent their lives fiddling the naive
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of fiddles
Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
Make sure to go on a night when the Moondogs bluegrass band is performing with washboards and fiddles.
—Megan Margulies, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2025
Country exists in two realities at once — the fiddles-and-steel-guitar traditionalists on one side and glossy crossovers on the other.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 1 Oct. 2025
Over a mashup of fiddles and guitars, Tod and Jennings blend their rough-hewn voices on a song about consequences for older vices and choices, pondering when the consequences of those actions outweigh the vices themselves.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 29 Sep. 2025
Editorial, Boston Herald, 12 Oct. 2025
Noun
The Man are sealing the honmoon with some fiddles.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
Make sure to go on a night when the Moondogs bluegrass band is performing with washboards and fiddles.
—Megan Margulies, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2025
Country exists in two realities at once — the fiddles-and-steel-guitar traditionalists on one side and glossy crossovers on the other.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 1 Oct. 2025
Over a mashup of fiddles and guitars, Tod and Jennings blend their rough-hewn voices on a song about consequences for older vices and choices, pondering when the consequences of those actions outweigh the vices themselves.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 29 Sep. 2025
Verb
Meanwhile, Congress fiddles while structural defects in Medicare and Social Security threaten to engulf the programs.
—Editorial, Boston Herald, 12 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fiddles
Noun
-
Names, email addresses, birth dates and purchase history can be used to create highly convincing scams.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
The report showed romance scams had the highest median dollar loss of all scam types at $6,099.—
Barbara White,
Kansas City Star,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The man fidgets, shifts around in his seat and fixates on Zarutska before pulling out a small knife and striking her multiple times around her neck.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Suddenly, Jeff Parker plucks a sighing six-note guitar run, dropping his shoulders into a solo section that carries the tune to its swooning conclusion.—
Dash Lewis,
Pitchfork,
20 Dec. 2025
-
As Natalie walks away from Shayne, possibly for good, and as Venus and some entity named Gabby lunge for each other, Katie Maloney Schwartz Maloney plucks out her earbuds, pulls her sunglasses off her cunty little bob, closes her copy of The Shards, and packs up her bag.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
17 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
The frauds have grown nearly in lockstep with the growth of the industry.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
11 Jan. 2026
-
There is absolutely no evidence that frauds of this type or anywhere near this scale are happening in any of the other four states, or frankly that there is a large volume of as-yet-undiscovered fraud in Minnesota itself.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
But don’t let any of that hinder you from seeing director/co-screenwriter Ryan Prows’ nutso horror movie, which also tosses some decidedly less effective social commentary onto the barbie.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Some lay them flat, others hang them up, and the last set tosses them into a bin.—
Jennifer Prince,
Southern Living,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Blashill wants the Blackhawks to be a fast-pressure team at both ends of the rink, one that attacks vertically but never cheats for offense.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Persistent muscle twitches Everyone’s muscles twitch from time to time, usually at various locations.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Some devices, for example, track eye movements or other small muscle twitches to let users select words from a screen.—
Emma R. Hasson,
Scientific American,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
This example of the latter skillfully squeezes a comfortable home for two into a single shipping container.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
11 Jan. 2026
-
As the moon follows an elliptical path, Saturn’s gravity stretches and squeezes it.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fiddles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fiddles. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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