fudging
UK[ˈfʌdʒɪŋ]US[ˈfʌdʒɪŋ]
v
Present participle or gerund of 'fudge'. To present or deal with something in a vague, misleading, or dishonest way, often to avoid a difficult issue or to make results seem better.
n
The act of presenting or dealing with something in a vague, misleading, or dishonest way.
Etymology
The verb 'fudge' emerged in the late 17th century, initially as an exclamation meaning 'nonsense!' or 'lies!'. Its uncertain etymology may link it to the older verb 'fadge', which meant to fit together or succeed, possibly suggesting a sense of making things fit through dishonest means. By the 18th century, it evolved to describe the act of falsifying or presenting something fraudulently. The modern sense, particularly of manipulating facts or figures in a vague or convenient way, solidified in the 19th century, giving us the present participle 'fudging' to describe the ongoing act of such manipulation.
Analysis
The word 'fudge' is a simplex. Its origin is uncertain but it is likely an alteration or euphemism of the now-obsolete verb 'fadge', meaning 'to fit' or 'to succeed'. The functional role is as a complete lexical root.
Examples
He was accused of fudging the data to make the experiment look successful.
Stop fudging the issue and give me a straight answer.
There was some creative fudging of the budget numbers in the annual report.