fiddlestick
Americannoun
noun
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informal a violin bow
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any meaningless or inconsequential thing; trifle
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an expression of annoyance or disagreement
Etymology
Origin of fiddlestick
First recorded in 1400–50, fiddlestick is from the late Middle English word fidillstyk. See fiddle, stick 1
Vocabulary lists containing fiddlestick
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His ears are perpetually drilling with a fiddlestick, and endures pleasures with less patience than other men do their pains.'
From The Wits and Beaux of Society Volume 1 by Wharton, Grace
The boy has had a little——" "A little fiddlestick!
From The Newcomes Memoirs of a Most Respectable Family by Thackeray, William Makepeace
And this was the first time George Esmond Warrington, Esquire, was ever called a fiddlestick.
From The Virginians by Thackeray, William Makepeace
"Cat's foot, fiddlestick, folderol, fudge!" remarked Mrs. Tree, blandly.
From Mrs. Tree by Richards, Laura Elizabeth Howe
Truly the "fiddlestick" is a magic wand in more senses than one.
From The Bow, Its History, Manufacture and Use 'The Strad' Library, No. III. by Saint-George, Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.