As fit as a fiddle means very healthy and full of energy. People say it about someone in great shape, often with a note of surprise: a grandmother in her eighties or a friend who has just recovered from an illness. In speech the first as is often dropped: fit as a fiddle. The idiom is informal; in an essay, write in excellent health instead.
When would you say as fit as a fiddle?
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be/feel + (as) fit as a fiddle; look + (as) fit as a fiddle
- My grandfather is 85, but he's as fit as a fiddle and still walks to the market every day.
- After a week of rest by the sea, I felt as fit as a fiddle again.
- After my check-up, the doctor said I was fit as a fiddle and could start training again.
What changed
First versionMy grandfather is 80, but he's as healthy as a bull.
RevisionMy grandfather is 80, but he's as fit as a fiddle.
As healthy as a bull is an invented comparison. A listener will probably get the idea, but English has no such idiom. The corrected sentence uses the fixed expression as fit as a fiddle instead.
As fit as a fiddle is about health and energy in general. To stress physical strength, English has as strong as an ox: He's as strong as an ox and carried the washing machine upstairs by himself. A strong person is not necessarily healthy, so the two idioms are not interchangeable.
Your turn
Mark was ill with flu last month, but now he's back at the gym and feels ___.
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as fit as a fiddle — Mark has got over the flu and is back at the gym, so he is healthy and full of energy again: as fit as a fiddle. Under the weather means feeling slightly ill, which contradicts the fact that he is training.
Write about someone you know who is in excellent shape. Say how old they are and what they do regularly to stay healthy.
My aunt is 72 and as fit as a fiddle because she swims in the lake every morning.
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