Diddle

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: ˈdɪdəɫ
• Rhymes: -ɪdÉ™l

Origin

From dialectal duddle, "to trick" (16th century), "to totter" (17th century); perhaps influenced by the name (which itself was probably chosen as an allusion to duddle) of the swindling character Jeremy Diddler in Kenney's Raising the Wind (1803). Meaning "to have sex with" is from the 19th century, "to masturbate" is 1950's.

Full definition of diddle

Noun

1. (music) In percussion, two consecutive notes played by the same hand (either RR or LL), similar to the drag, except that by convention diddles are played the same speed as the context in which they are placed
2. (slang, childish) The penis.

Verb

1. (transitive) to cheat; to swindle
2. (transitive) to have sex with
3. (transitive) to masturbate (especially of women)
4. (transitive) to waste time
5. (intransitive) To totter, as a child in walking; to daddle.

Synonyms

Anagrams

• lidded