tripoter

to fiddle with, to mess with

t ʁ i . p ɔ . t e
verb Rare #36,061
to fiddle with, to mess with Often suggests handling something too much or in a suspicious way.
FR: Arrête de tripoter ce bouton, tu vas le casser.
EN: Stop fiddling with that button, you’re going to break it.

Commencez pas à vous tripoter!

Don't start touching yourself!

— Malèna (2000)

Mon amie ne le laisse même pas lui tripoter les fesses.

My friend won't even let him grope her buttocks.

— Running Man (2025)

Oui, mais il était en train de tripoter ma soeur, tu vois.

Yes, but he was groping my sister, you see.

— Harry Potter et le Prince de sang-mêlé (2009)

Arrêtez de tout tripoter!

Stop fiddling with everything!

— The Man From Nowhere (2010)

Il ne pouvait pas s'empêcher de le tripoter.

He couldn't help fiddling with it.

Ça ne sert à rien de le tripoter!

There's no point in fiddling with it!

— Les Visiteurs (1993)

Sounds similar to