diddler
Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.
Related to diddler: fiddler
did·dle 1
(dĭd′l)tr.v. did·dled, did·dling, did·dles
Slang To cheat; swindle: "The Swiss have special laws for people who diddle hotels" (John le Carré).
[Perhaps akin to Old English dydrian, to deceive, or from variant of dialectal doodle, fool, simpleton; akin to Low German dudeldopp.]
did′dler n.
did·dle 2
(dĭd′l)v. did·dled, did·dling, did·dles
v.tr.
1. To jerk up and down or back and forth.
2. Vulgar Slang
a. To have intercourse with (a woman).
b. To practice masturbation upon.
v.intr.
1. To shake rapidly; jiggle.
2. Slang To play experimentally; toy: The children diddled with the knobs on the television all afternoon.
3. Slang To waste time: diddled around all morning.
[Probably alteration of dialectal didder, to quiver, tremble, from Middle English dideren, variant of daderen, doderen; see dodder1.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
diddler
nounThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007