piddle, v. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

piddle v.

[mid-16C SE piddle, to trifle, to work or act in a petty or insignificant way. The ext. to urination began as a childish expression (? implying the insignificant amount of urine produced). The phrs. below therefore refer back to the 16C use, even if the assumption is of the later one]

1. to urinate, thus piddler, one who urinates.

1725		A. Philips & H. Carey ‘Namby Pamby’ in A. Carpenter Verse in Eng. in 18C Ireland (1998) 141: Little Jingles, little Chimes, / [...] / Piddling Ponds of Pissy-Piss.
[1833		Satirist (London) 10 Mar. 499/2: [W]e must say that we entertain a higher opinion of Mr. Henry Blunt’s understanding than to suppose he would piddle with ‘illustrious ladies’ for single guineas].
1785		‘Peter Pindar’ More Lyric Odes to the Royal Academicians VI 15: A pair of globes, so like the things, That dogs may go, and ’gainst them piddle.
c.1786		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue ms. additions n.p.: Piddle, to make Water. A childish expression, Mammy I want to piddle.
1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (3rd edn).
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1833		‘Sam Booze’s Funeral’ Lummy Chaunter 87: One mourner piddled in his shoes, / Another hah’d his breeches.
1841		‘Lord Bateman’s Long Jock’ Gentleman’s Spicey Songster 21: In his prison there grew a tree, / To which they chained him round the middle / For twenty years he could not move / Away from it, to go to piddle.
1879		‘Nursery Rhymes’ in Pearl 5 Nov. 32: Said she, ‘Does it itch?’ / ‘It does, you damned bitch, / And burns like hell-fire when I peedle.’.
1888–94		‘Walter’ My Secret Life (1966) I 13: She sometimes held my little prick when I piddled.
1898		‘Mary Suckit’ Yvonne 20: It was always when she was enjoying the most delicious sensations, that this want to piddle came over her.
c.1900		‘Ramrod’ Nocturnal Meeting 113: Fancy your having the impudence to piddle down my back.
1929		E. Dahlberg Bottom Dogs 229: Suddenly the nag bolted, came to a suredead halt and started to piddle.
1934		H. Miller Tropic of Cancer (1963) 60: You run at her heels like a watchdog and you piddle everywhere.
1942		G. Legman Rationale of the Dirty Joke (1972) I 244: Send me up a blonde, a bedpan, and a violin — I don’t know whether I want to diddle, piddle or fiddle.
1945		‘Cats on the Rooftops’ in Mess Songs & Rhymes of the RAAF 1: He doesn’t stop to take it out, he piddles through his nose.
1959		I. & P. Opie Lore and Lang. of Schoolchildren (1977) 113: Oh the black cat piddled in the white cat’s eye, / The white cat said, Gord blimey.
1960		J.R. Ackerley We Think The World Of You (1971) 60: Don’t let ’im piddle on ’em, for Gawd’s sake!
1979		Ian Dury ‘Spasticus Autisticus’ 🎵 I widdle when I piddle.
1983		J. Byrell (con. 1959) Up the Cross 24: Fenmore [i.e. a dog] was an A-grade piddler.
1985		B. Robinson Aussie Bull 2: Little boys also start competing to see who can piddle further up the wall etc.
1986		F. Pitt-Kethley Sky Ray Lolly 25: I was quite glad when Polly, next-door’s cat [...] ran up and piddled through our bannisters.
1996		R. Doyle Woman Who Walked Into Doors 13: It was only a bucket with a fancy lid on it [...] Roger was determined that he was going to piddle into it.
2002		R.G. Barrett Mystery Bay Blues 274: He gazed down at the cherub piddling away in the backyard below.
2005		Guardian G2 10 Jan. 7: On-screen piddling has come out of the (water) closet.
2007		B. Reed ‘The Meat Axe by the Kitchen Door’ in Passing Strange (2015) 5: She knows she needs to piddle.
2021		L. McInerney Rules of Revelation 248: ‘Sure it never is [the right time], when it comes to piddling’.
2023		R. Milward Man-Eating Typewriter 306: [M]y piddlings were finished.

2. to rain, with an implication of drizzle rather than heavy rain.

1968

(con. 1950s) J. Healy Death of an Irish Town 56: The ubiquitous lawn-sprinkler piddled on grey-brown grass.

In derivatives

piddler (n.)

in juv. use, the genitals.

c.1900

A. Cairene Sixfold Sensuality 55: They used to kiss and play with each others piddlers.

piddles (n.)

(N.Z. prison) an officer who tests urine for drugs.

2001

D. Looser Boobslang [U. Canterbury D.Phil. thesis] 140/1: piddles n. the officer who conducts inmates’ urine tests.

piddling (adj.)

insignificant, worthless.

2013

T. Piccirilli Last Whisper in the Dark 34: [H]e became a hateful, piddling prick.

In phrases

piddle about (v.) (also piddle, piddle around) [see main ety. above]

1. to waste time, to mess about.

[1545		R. Ascham Toxophilus (1761) II 136: You cunninge archers [...] beinge verye Englishmen, neuer ceasynge piddelynge about theyr bowe and shaftes, whan they be well].
1905		J.W. Carr ‘Words from Northwest Arkansas’ in DN III:i 90: piddle, v. To waste one’s time. ‘He’s just piddlin’ around.
1909		Eve. Star (Wash., DC) 11 Sept. 20/1: The kids piddling around in the attic.
1925		G.H. Mullin Adventures of a Scholar Tramp 108: At one house I found an old man piddling around in the kitchen.
1934		C.S. Johnson Shadow of the Plantation 183: Those who do not like what is covered by the community may ‘piddle around the house,’ ‘set on the porch and rock,’ ‘lay down and sleep’ .
1949		P. Larkin letter 13 July in Thwaite Sel. Letters (1992) 153: I suppose there is a work of some kind somewhere that I should enjoy doing, [...] certainly piddling about in a Library is not it.
1950		K. Vonnegut ‘Thanasphere’ Bagombo Snuff Box (1999) 22: We can’t afford to piddle around.
1956		Mad mag. Summer 18: They didn’t waste time. They didn’t piddle. No messing around.
1973		Buerkle & Barker Bourbon Street Black 57: I used to piddle around on a piano.
c.1990		H. Huncke ‘Oral History of Benzedrine’ in Huncke Reader (1998) 340: A lot of people who weren’t of the underworld were piddling around with the stuff [i.e. benzedrine].
1998		J. Lansdale Rumble Tumble 122: He wouldn’t work. Not really. He’d piddle here and there to pick up a few bucks.

2. attrib. use of sense 1.

1968

T. Thackrey Gambling Secrets of Nick The Greek 41: This [...] piddle-around action is the worst that can happen.

3. to waste, to squander.

1912		R.W. Brown ‘Word-List From Western Indiana’ in DN III:viii 585: piddle, v. To waste one’s time in trifles.
1953		W. Eyster Far from the Customary Skies 166: We was only listenin’ for the hell of it. Piddlin’ time by, that’s all.

piddle along (v.) [see main ety. above]

lit. or fig., to wander, to go.

1933		W.R. Burnett Dark Hazard (1934) 159: One minute you were piddling along, winning a little, losing a little; then suddenly something hit you; you were a different man; your ‘luck was in’.
1934		H. Miller Tropic of Cancer (1963) 204: We piddled along at the edge of the basin where everything was jumbled and tangled.

piddle away (v.) [see main ety. above]

to waste, to squander.

1953		W. Eyster Far from the Customary Skies 308: Ah’m gonna hold up my strength for when I get back on the farm, an’ ju’ piddle away time like these’ns.
1967		J. Wynnum I’m a Jack, All Right 17: Piddling all your savings up against a pub wall.
1976		P. Conroy Great Santini (1977) 277: High school coaches in the Deep South who usually regarded basketball as a bastard weak-kneed son who whined and piddled away the dark season between football and baseball.
1980		A. Maupin More Tales of the City (1984) 93: We will not piddle away the rest of our days.