I have got a question.
Being prone to irritation, I often burst out with words such as 'fiddlesticks!' and phrases (silly as can be, of course) such as 'poppycock and dewberries!'
This morning I was practicing my instrument when I made a mistake. I yelled 'fiddlesticks!' and a relation who heard asked if I knew why that word is used as an expostulation, since it means a violin bow.
I was immediately curious. This word is used a good deal- And I doubt many people know what it means. I looked it up on the Internet, but only found a few things. Does anyone have a good etymology for it?