fiddle while Rome burns

English

Alternative forms

• fiddle whilst Rome burns

Etymology

From the ancient rumour that the Roman emperor Nero played a lyre whilst the city of Rome was burning.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

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Verb

fiddle while Rome burns (third-person singular simple present fiddles while Rome burns, present participle fiddling while Rome burns, simple past and past participle fiddled while Rome burned or fiddled while Rome burnt)

1. (idiomatic) To neglect helping when one’s time is needed most; to ignore the major problem at hand (whilst doing something less important); to be idle, inactive, or uninterested in a time of great need.

Synonyms

• sit on one's hands
• sit on one's thumbs

Translations

to ignore the major problem

• Finnish: haaskata aikaa kun olisi tärkeämpääkin tekemistä
• Greek: εδώ ο κόσμος καίγεται και το μουνί χτενίζεται (edó o kósmos kaígetai kai to mouní chtenízetai) (vulgar)
• Macedonian: село гори, баба се чешла (selo gori, baba se češla, literally “the village is burning, granny is combing her hair”)
• Polish: nie zajmować się problemem impf

See also

• rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic
• bury one's head in the sand

Further reading

• “fiddle while Rome burns”, in Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, 1999–present.