Q: "fannying around" from French 'faineant'?
Joel S. Berson
Berson at ATT.NET
Sat Dec 15 20:05:39 UTC 2012
A correspondent claims "Fannying around' is an exact equivalent of
the meaning of 'faineant' in French, despite OED."
The OED claims for "fanny, v.2" -- "slang (chiefly Brit.); intr. to
fanny about (also around) : to mess around, waste time; to act in an
unproductive, ineffectual, or dithering manner" -- the Etymology "<
fanny n.4." [backside].
Who's correct?
Joel
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