FIDDLES Synonyms: 120 Similar and Opposite Words

fiddles 1 of 2

noun

plural of fiddle

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

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fiddles

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of fiddle

as in fidgets

to make jerky or restless movements the executive fiddled with a pen as she impatiently waited for the meeting to begin

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in plucks

to rob by the use of trickery or threats conscienceless grifters who had spent their lives fiddling the naive

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of fiddles

Noun

And with fiddles, accordions, guitars and her current instrument of choice, the minstrel banjo. — Chris Willman, Variety, 25 June 2026 Live musicians will play, usually country or Cajun French music, featuring instruments like accordions and fiddles. — Carlie Procell, USA Today, 18 Feb. 2026 The film's soundtrack carries on that way throughout, showing the boundless energy of hardscrabble, down-to-their-last-dime people via fifes, fiddles, and harps. — Alex Galbraith, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Feb. 2026 Many musical instruments, particularly hollow wooden ones like acoustic guitars and fiddles, as well as pianos, are susceptible to damage from temperature and humidity fluctuations. — Margaret Littman, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2026 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

The contract model means that when Congress fiddles, it isn’t impacted. — The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 22 Mar. 2026 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

As scams become more sophisticated and pervasive, leaders should rethink how their organizations identify, measure and respond to cybercrime as an enterprise-wide business risk.

— Mark Beare, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
This includes any number of disputes between parties, but also issues such as evictions, scams targeting senior citizens, and domestic-violence protective orders.

— David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 23 July 2026

Definition of scams

Verb

His torso and thighs grow eye-poppingly muscular beneath their skimpy fur-and-leather togs—a development that does not go unnoticed by a warrior named Red Hair, who plucks the young hunk from his post and tosses him into the prime time of the gladiator pit.

— Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
But the emotional gravity of this offering's deeply personal, melancholic lyrical content plucks an undeniably profound chord that uniquely separates it from the rest of his work.

— Chris Barilla, PEOPLE, 29 May 2026

Definition of plucks

Noun

Philly may be shedding its second-fiddle status, but it remains entirely repulsed by frauds and underachievers.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 24 July 2026
Focus Your Defenses Where The Risk Is Highest Many of today's biggest frauds begin with an email, an invoice or a payment request that looks completely legitimate.

— Mark Beare, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026

Definition of frauds

Verb

That not only squeezes consumers' budgets, but also hits businesses hard, especially those which are heavily dependent on fuel.

— ABC News, ABC News, 23 July 2026
That not only squeezes consumers’ budgets, but also hits businesses hard, especially those that are heavily dependent on fuel.

— Matt Ott, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026