Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

twiddle one's thumbs

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.11 in modern English

Syllables: twid-dle one's thumbs
IPA

29

Scrabble Score

17

Letters

2

Syllables

13

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

to circle one's thumbs around one another, usually with the fingers interlaced, usually done idly while waiting or bored

verb

To wait or dawdle; to accomplish nothing useful or lack a useful occupation.

Example Sentences

"He twiddled his thumbs for almost a week while he waited for somebody to set up his computer."

Inflected Forms

twiddles one's thumbs (present, singular) twiddling one's thumbs (participle, present) twiddled one's thumbs (participle, past) twiddled one's thumbs (past)

Synonyms

sit on one's hands bide one's time hold one's horses fool around lallygag loaf about

Questions

What does twiddle one's thumbs mean?: to circle one's thumbs around one another, usually with the fingers interlaced, usually done idly while waiting or bored

How to pronounce twiddle one's thumbs

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