randomness

noun

ran·​dom·​ness ˈran-dəm-nəs 

: the quality or state of being or seeming random (as in lacking or seeming to lack a definite plan, purpose, or pattern)

Many Western artists and writers have been inspired by the I Ching. … The composer John Cage used it as a way to generate randomness and chance in his compositions, giving them their distinctive and often remarkable qualities.

—Heinz Insu Fenkl

… the metaphor of a coin flip for randomness remains unquestioned. We use coin tosses to settle disputes and decide outcomes because we believe they are unbiased, with 50-50 odds. Yet recent research into coin flips has discovered that the laws of mechanics determine the outcome of coin tosses …

—David E. Adler

the randomness of life

Examples of randomness in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Postseason series wins are based on fortunate timing and randomness, with some small amount coming from talent advantages. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 Aug. 2026

The idea wasn’t entirely new; randomness is the force behind many profound ideas in number theory, including the twin prime conjecture and the Riemann hypothesis. — Lyndie Chiou, Scientific American, 5 Aug. 2026

The randomness of the phrases is meant to be unpredictable, though the software bug present in Coldcard firmware—dating back to March 2021—meant the device was producing seeds with less randomness than advertised. — Ty Roush, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

And not every run will be a banger, of course; there’s plenty of randomness involved, as befits the genre. — ArsTechnica, 31 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined above