fidget

[ fij-it ]
See synonyms for: fidgetfidgetingfidgets on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)
  1. to move about restlessly, nervously, or impatiently.

  2. to play with something in a restless or nervous way; fiddle: The boy kept fidgeting with the toy instead of paying attention.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cause to fidget; make uneasy: He was fidgeted by a hunch that the girl was going to cause trouble.

noun
  1. Often fidg·ets. the condition or an instance of being nervously restless, uneasy, or impatient.

  2. Also fidg·et·er. a person who fidgets.

Origin of fidget

1
First recorded in 1665–75; compare dialectal fidge “to fidget,” akin to the synonymous expressive words fitch, fig, fike; compare Old Norse fīkjast “to be eager,” Old Swedish fīkja “to be restless”

Other words from fidget

  • fidg·et·ing·ly, adverb
  • un·fidg·et·ing, adjective

Words Nearby fidget

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use fidget in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fidget

fidget

/ (ˈfɪdʒɪt) /


verb
  1. (intr) to move about restlessly

  2. (intr often foll by with) to make restless or uneasy movements (with something); fiddle: he fidgeted with his pen

  1. (tr) to cause to fidget

  2. (tr) to cause to worry; make uneasy

noun
  1. (often plural) a state of restlessness or unease, esp as expressed in continual motion: he's got the fidgets

  2. a person who fidgets

Origin of fidget

1
C17: from earlier fidge, probably from Old Norse fīkjast to desire eagerly

Derived forms of fidget

  • fidgetingly, adverb
  • fidgety, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012