Synonyms for fiddle

Most common

1. Diddle

play, diddle, toy

2. Monkey

monkey, tamper

Other

tinker, trifle, fool, shirk, faddle

v. 1
To play the fiddle or violin, particularly in a folk or country style.
to fiddle while Rome burns
v. 2
To fraudulently manipulate (records, accounts, etc.) in order to cheat or swindle.
Fred was sacked when the auditors caught him fiddling the books.
n. 1
A violin, a small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin, shoulder, chest or on the upper thigh and played with a bow (see also usage notes below).
...Of harpe & of salteriun. of fiðele & of coriun...

Word family: fiddledeedee fiddle-faddle fiddlehead fiddleist fiddler fiddlery fiddlestick fiddlesticks
Phrases: fiddle with bass fiddle bull fiddle fiddle around fiddle about horsehead fiddle first fiddle guitar fiddle

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

3 letters: kit¹, toy¹, paw¹
4 letters: play¹, fool¹
5 letters: fraud¹, shirk¹
6 letters: monkey², violin³, tinker², racket², tamper², trifle², diddle², faddle
7 letters: racquet²
10 letters: triviality⁵

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (monkey² = 2 syllables).