twiddled one's thumbs

Verb

twiddle one's thumbs (third-person singular simple present twiddles one's thumbs, present participle twiddling one's thumbs, simple past and past participle twiddled one's thumbs)

1. to circle one's thumbs around one another, usually with the fingers interlaced, usually done idly while waiting or bored

   Synonyms:

   hold one's horses, lallygag, loaf about

2. (idiomatic) To wait or dawdle; to accomplish nothing useful or lack a useful occupation.
   • He twiddled his thumbs for almost a week while he waited for somebody to set up his computer.

   Synonyms:

   sit on one's hands, bide one's time, fool around