Past tense of 'diddle'; cheated or swindled someone, or wasted time on something trivial.
From 'diddle,' which possibly derives from the nursery rhyme character 'Diddle Diddle Dumpling' or from Old English/German roots meaning 'to deceive.' The meaning evolved from playful trickery to outright fraud.
The nursery rhyme connection is fascinating—'diddle' as cheating may trace back to the frivolous repetition in children's rhymes, suggesting that 'diddling' originally meant wasting time with meaningless repetition before it meant defrauding!
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