Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - fiddle

~1 n informal 1 BrE a dishonest way of getting money  (a tax fiddle | be on the fiddle (=be getting money dishonestly or illegally))  (They suspected he was on the fiddle all along.) 2 a violin 3 be a fiddle to be difficult to do and involve complicated movements of your hands  (This blouse is a bit of a fiddle to do up.)  (- see also fit as a fiddle fit2 (3), play second fiddle to sb play1 (15)) ~2 v 1 to keep moving something or touching it with your fingers, especially because you are bored or nervous  (She sat for a time, fiddling, with her glass. | Stop fiddling will you!) 2 to give false information about something, in order to avoid paying money or to get extra money  (Bert had been fiddling his income tax for years. | fiddle the books (=give false figures in a company's financial records)) fiddle around also fiddle about BrE phr v to waste time doing unimportant things  (We can't fiddle around here all day - let's move on.) fiddle around with sth also fiddle about with sth BrE phr v 1 to keep moving the parts of something or making changes to it, especially in a way that is stupid or dangerous  (Why did you let her fiddle around with the remote control?) 2 to keep changing the positions of a group of things until you find the arrangement that you like  (Is it all right if I fiddle around with these figures?) fiddle with sth phr v 1 to move part of a machine in order to make it work, without knowing exactly what you should do  (After fiddling with the tuning I finally got JFM.) 2 to move or touch something that does not belong to you, in an annoying way  (Don't let him fiddle with my bag.)