shuffle

verb shuf·fle \ ˈshə-fəl \

Definition of shuffle

shuffled; shuffling play \ˈshə-f(ə-)liŋ\

transitive verb

1 :to mix in a mass confusedly :jumble

2 :to put or thrust aside or under cover

shuffled the whole matter out of his mind

3 a :to rearrange (playing cards, dominoes, tiles, etc.) to produce a random order

b :to move about, back and forth, or from one place to another :shift

shuffle funds among various accounts

4 a :to move by sliding along or back and forth without lifting

shuffle one's feet

b :to perform (something, such as a dance) with a dragging, sliding step

intransitive verb

1 :to work into or out of trickily

shuffled out of the difficulty

2 :to act or speak in a shifty or evasive manner

3 a :to move or walk in a sliding dragging manner without lifting the feet

b :to dance in a lazy nonchalant manner with sliding and tapping motions of the feet

c :to execute in a perfunctory or clumsy manner

4 :to mix playing cards or counters by shuffling

—

shuffler

play \ˈshə-f(ə-)lər\ noun

See shuffle defined for English-language learners

See shuffle defined for kids

Examples of shuffle in a Sentence

He shuffled across the floor.
She stood there, shuffling her feet, waiting for the bus to arrive.
She shuffled the papers on her desk.
The manager shuffled the batting order.
Whose turn is it to shuffle and deal?

Recent Examples of shuffle from the Web

Just a short drive down the road, people shuffled in and out of the Brown’s convenience store.

— vann r. newkirk ii, The Atlantic, "Black Charlottesville has Seen This All Before," 18 Aug. 2017
Buffalo shuffled its receivers this offseason after losing Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin in free agency.

— baltimoresun.com, "Former Ravens WR Anquan Boldin signs with the Bills," 7 Aug. 2017
Prentice Penny, then shuffles over to me in her costume for the day: a sleek, blunt lob wig, a sharp yellow blazer, white jeans, and a few delicate rings spread across her fingers.

— allison p. davis, The Cut, "Yvonne Orji Is Living Single," 24 July 2017
And there likely will be more shuffling on Wednesday in Santa Clara.

— brian straus, SI.com, "After Dominant Win vs. Costa Rica, USA Proves it is the Favorite for Gold Cup Glory," 23 July 2017
The Twins have been shuffling pitchers between the big league club and Rochester.

— the lonnquist notes, by kevin lonnquist, star-telegram, "Pro baseball players with Northeast Tarrant roots are struggling," 17 July 2017
And in-fighting has shuffled the group around a bit.

— AL.com, "Southern hip-hop producers who changed the game," 10 July 2017
The Detroit Tigers shuffled outfielders around on Wednesday afternoon.

— anthony fenech, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Tigers shuffle the outfield, activate Alex Presley," 5 July 2017
Shuffling back to Kegler's Kove after the touring and label promises fell though would've just stung too much.

— matt wake, AL.com, "The Alabama band a rock-star left behind rises again," 3 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shuffle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of shuffle

perhaps irregular from ¹shove

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1570

See Words from the same year

shuffle Synonyms

Synonyms

barge, clomp, clump, flog [British], flounder, galumph, lump, plod, pound, scuff, scuffle, shamble, lumber, slog, slough, stamp, stomp, stumble, stump, tramp, tromp, trudge

Antonyms

breeze, coast, glide, slide, waltz, whisk

Related Words

drag, flop, haul; blunder, careen, dodder, lurch, reel, stagger, sway, teeter, totter, waddle, weave, wobble (also wabble)

Near Antonyms

drift, float, hang, hover, poise, waft

shuffle

noun

Definition of shuffle

1 :an evasion of the issue :equivocation

2 a :an act of shuffling (as of cards)

b :a right or turn to shuffle

it's your shuffle

c :a confusing jumble (as of papers or events)

lost in the shuffle

3 a :a dragging sliding movement; specifically :a sliding or scraping step in dancing

b :a dance characterized by such a step

c (1) :a rhythm where each beat of the measure is played as a triplet with the first and second parts of the triplet tied and the third part accented

(2) :music played in a shuffle rhythm

See shuffle defined for English-language learners

Examples of shuffle in a Sentence

We heard the shuffle of feet outside the door.
He gave the cards a good shuffle and then dealt.

Recent Examples of shuffle from the Web

The hotel is clearly catering to millennials, with its enormous non-gambling play space of indoor/outdoor bocce ball courts, ping pong, darts, shuffle board, skee-ball, and a gigantic sports bar.

— heather platt, Los Angeles Magazine, "Reno: It’s Not Just The Place You Ignore While Skiing in Tahoe Anymore," 28 Aug. 2017
Rotation shuffle As of Thursday morning, the Reds didn’t yet know whether veteran right-hander Scott Feldman would be able to jump back into the rotation from the disabled list Saturday.

— zach buchanan, Cincinnati.com, "Reds notes: Winker gets shot atop lineup," 10 Aug. 2017
Because of their unique position in the family, middle children have to learn, perhaps more than any of their siblings, how to get along to go along while still making sure they don't get lost in the shuffle.

— charlotte andersen, Redbook, "Is The Middle Child Syndrome a Myth or Do Parents Need To Take It Seriously?," 7 Aug. 2017
On defensive set pieces people get lost in the shuffle You get picked off sometimes, that happens.

— janie mccauley, courant.com, "Jordan Morris Adds Gold Cup To NCAA, MLS Titles," 27 July 2017
But somewhere along the way, a very important detail got lost in the shuffle.

— eliza thompson, Cosmopolitan, "More People Should Be Talking About the New Dickon Tarly on Game of Thrones," 24 July 2017
His awkward affirmative answer and quick shuffle away into the crowd didn’t reassure many.

— pablo mhanna-sandoval, Teen Vogue, "Justin Trudeau Attends Pride While Funding an Anti-LGBTQ Regime," 29 June 2017
The resignations of the two officials — François Bayrou, the justice minister, and Marielle de Sarnez, the minister for European affairs — cast a shadow over what was supposed to be a minor cabinet shuffle later on Wednesday.

— aurelien breeden and benoÎt morenne, New York Times, "2 Ministers Allied With Emmanuel Macron Resign in France," 21 June 2017
Before activity, stretch with more dynamic movements – jumping jacks, side shuffles and other movements that get the heart pumping.

— nick parkinson, m.ed., at, Detroit Free Press, "Work Out Too Hard? A Trainer’s 7 Tips," 19 June 2017

First Known Use of shuffle

1628

shuffle Synonyms

Other Game Terms

bezique, carom, convention, crap, euchre, gambit, monte, parlay, tierce

SHUFFLE Defined for English Language Learners

shuffle

verb

Definition of shuffle for English Language Learners

: to slide your feet along the ground or back and forth without lifting them completely
: to move things or people into a different order or into different positions
: to mix (playing cards) before playing a game so that no one knows what order they are in

shuffle

noun

Definition of shuffle for English Language Learners

: the act of moving by sliding your feet without lifting them off the ground
: the act of mixing the order of playing cards : the act of shuffling cards

SHUFFLE Defined for Kids

shuffle

verb shuf·fle \ ˈshə-fəl \

Definition of shuffle for Students

shuffled; shuffling

1 :to slide back and forth without lifting

He shuffled his feet.

2 :to walk or move by sliding or dragging the feet

I just shuffled along.

3 :to mix up the order of (as playing cards)

4 :to push or move about or from place to place

She shuffled the papers on her desk.

shuffle

noun

Definition of shuffle for Students

1 :a sliding or dragging walk

2 :an act of mixing up or moving so as to change the order or position

3 :a confusing jumble

The idea was lost in the shuffle.

Learn More about shuffle

See words that rhyme with shuffle Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for shuffle Spanish Central: Translation of shuffle Nglish: Translation of shuffle for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of shuffle for Arabic speakers

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shuffle

Definition of shuffle

shuffler

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shuffle

Definition of shuffle

Examples of shuffle in a Sentence

Recent Examples of shuffle from the Web

First Known Use of shuffle

shuffle Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Other Game Terms

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SHUFFLE Defined for English Language Learners

shuffle

Definition of shuffle for English Language Learners

shuffle

Definition of shuffle for English Language Learners

SHUFFLE Defined for Kids

shuffle

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shuffle

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