Fribble

Word of the Day for Monday, July 15, 2013

Fribble \FRIB-uhl\, verb:

1. to act in a foolish or frivolous manner; trifle.
2. to waste foolishly (often followed by away): He fribbled away one opportunity after another.

noun:
1. a foolish or frivolous person; trifler.
2. anything trifling or frivolous.
3. frivolousness.

adjective:
1. frivolous; foolish; trifling.

When a little recovered, he fribbled with his waistcoat buttons, as if he had been telling his beads.
-- Samuel Richardson, Clarrisa, 1748

He fribbled away his time collecting bric-a-brac and drinking tea with old ladies; yet wrote the best letter; in the language in the midst of the chatter; knew everyone; went everywhere; and, as he said, "lived post."
-- Virginia Woolf, The Death of the Moth and Other Essays, 1942

Fribble is most likely a variant of the more common word frivol meaning "to behave frivolously."

Thanks to: www.dictionary.com