fidget with

fidget with (something)

To compulsively fiddle with something in a nervous or restless manner. Mary, stop fidgeting with your necklace like that and sit still!
See also: fidget
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

fidget with something

to play with something nervously. Please don't fidget with your zipper. Carl is always fidgeting with his left ear.
See also: fidget
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • fidget with (something)
  • fidget
  • fidget about
  • fidget around
  • hang up (one's) fiddle
  • hang up your fiddle
  • twiddle with
  • twiddle with (someone)
  • have a fix on (something)
  • get a fix (of something)
References in periodicals archive
The Travel Sensory Kit contains a blue Chew-A-Roo Round Chew Pendant for chewing; a Chew-A-Roo Chew Straw 3-Pack for chewing during mealtime; a Gidget Widget to fidget with; a Spinning Light Globe for dark play; a Flashing Orbit Ball for visual tracking and dark play; a Textured Tangle Jr to twist and pull; an Easy Grip Egg Shaker to get hands and ears going; a Wikki Stix Rainbow Pack for creative fine-motor play; a blue Fluxy Oral Motor Tool for chewing; a Small Tin of Crazy Aaron's Thinking Putty to squeeze, twist, and pull; a Mini Water Wiggle for squishy tactile fun; and a Red Oggi Jr for fidgeting and sticking to windows.
TRAVEL SENSORY KIT
The Fidget Cube has six sides and each side features something to fidget with [yen]" click, glide, flip, breathe, roll and spin.
Gadgets of the week
As part of our work, we've asked people what items they like to fidget with and how and when they use them.
Fidget Spinners And How, When And Why People Use The Trendy Toys
RISK: Fat cats like Fidget with owner Wendy; HEALTH WORRY: Overweight dog
Meow ate all the pies; WE'RE KILLING PETS WITH FOOD SAY VETS
He notes that residents with dementia often "interpret the product as the underwear they are familiar with and are thus less likely to fidget with it and far more likely to self-toilet."
Incontinence products
Schoolboy Daniel Thornley, 14, an Australian expat who has lived in Bahrain since he was four, said: "I use it in class so that I don't have to fidget with my pens and pencils.
Classroom spin craze