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)
… 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
David E. Adlerthe randomness of life
Examples of randomness in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The unreasonable effectiveness of randomness led him to think about the nature of randomness itself.
—Quanta Magazine, 10 Apr. 2024
Like so many Baltimoreans, so many Americans, Smith thought about the randomness of life.
—Ray Sanchez, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
To a first approximation, this setting controls the randomness and creativity of its output.
—Patrick House, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024
There’s this element of randomness to the precipitation of my medical treatment.
—Isabella Cueto, STAT, 8 Mar. 2024
There's a temptation to throw logic out the window in these episodes, but throwing each story's internal logic away in pursuit of usually not very big laughs too often smacks of randomness for its own sake.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 24 Nov. 2023
This question is central to numerous fields of mathematics, and mathematicians have a variety of tests to detect randomness.
—Christopher Lutsko, Scientific American, 30 Jan. 2024
His argument is yet another example of how randomness can be used as a tool to infer the existence of structure.
—Quanta Magazine, 23 Dec. 2023
There was a Mad-Libs quality to Santos’s claims, a giddy randomness that felt tuned toward social media.
—Amanda Hess, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2024
Quanta Magazine, 10 Apr. 2024
Like so many Baltimoreans, so many Americans, Smith thought about the randomness of life.
—Ray Sanchez, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
To a first approximation, this setting controls the randomness and creativity of its output.
—Patrick House, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024
There’s this element of randomness to the precipitation of my medical treatment.
—Isabella Cueto, STAT, 8 Mar. 2024
There's a temptation to throw logic out the window in these episodes, but throwing each story's internal logic away in pursuit of usually not very big laughs too often smacks of randomness for its own sake.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 24 Nov. 2023
This question is central to numerous fields of mathematics, and mathematicians have a variety of tests to detect randomness.
—Christopher Lutsko, Scientific American, 30 Jan. 2024
His argument is yet another example of how randomness can be used as a tool to infer the existence of structure.
—Quanta Magazine, 23 Dec. 2023
There was a Mad-Libs quality to Santos’s claims, a giddy randomness that felt tuned toward social media.
—Amanda Hess, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'randomness.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near randomness
Cite this Entry
“Randomness.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/randomness. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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