fiddle-arse, v. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

fiddle-arse v.

also fiddle-arse about/around, fiddle-fart (about/around)

[SE fiddle + arse about under arse v./fart about under fart v.; note fiddlefoot, for a horse to make jumpy, skittish movements; thus fiddlefoot, to wander aimlessly]

(Aus.) to mess around, to waste time.

1943		Baker Popular Dict. Aus. Sl. (2nd edn).
1968		(con. 1928) S. Gore Holy Smoke 93: Fot the sake of yer old man, don’t fiddlearse around playin’ the goat all the rest of yer life.
1975		G. Underwood ‘Razorback Sl.’ in AS L:1/2 59: fiddle fart around v phr Loaf, shirk responsibility.
1998		Rich Hull Journal 16 Sept. 🌐 I usually procrastinate and fiddle arse about until I only get half the things done that I wanted to but today I just seemed to be very organised.
1999		L.D. Jacobson Lower Lights 105: I’m not going to fiddle-fart around with you. I know what I want and I want the best to do it for me.
2000–02		Macquarie Dict. 🌐 fiddle-fart verb to waste time in frivolous activity. Also, fiddle-arse.
2005		Arkansas Times 21 July 🌐 As long as he’ll just fiddle fart his term away, the country will muddle along just fine.
2007		J. Timmins As Big as the Sky 55: She cooked lovely meals for every one [and]she even had a half dozen cats and a sweet disposition ‘don't fiddle arse about in my kitchen’ she would say laughingly to me if I was in her way.