Standard Lemma guide

shuffle

noun · verb · 18 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈʃʌfəl/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ʌfəl
  • CMU ARPABET: SH AH1 F AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The act of mixing cards or mah-jong tiles so as to randomize them.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • He made a real mess of the last shuffle.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The act of reordering anything, such as music tracks in a media player.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

An instance of walking without lifting one's feet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The sad young girl left with a tired shuffle.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A rhythm commonly used in blues music, consisting of a series of triplet notes with the middle note missing, so that it sounds like a long note followed by a short note, and suggests a walker dragging one foot.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A dance move in which the foot is scuffed back and forth across the floor.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: dance, dancing, hobbies, lifestyle, sports

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A trick; an artifice; an evasion.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To put in a random order.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: ambitransitive

Examples

  • Don't forget to shuffle the cards.
  • You shuffle, and I'll deal.
  • The data packets are shuffled before transmission.
  • I'm going to shuffle all the songs in my playlist.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To change; modify the order of something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

To move in a slovenly, dragging manner; to drag or scrape the feet in walking or dancing.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: ambitransitive

Examples

  • He shuffled out of the room.
  • I shuffled my feet in embarrassment.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To change one's position; to shift ground; to evade questions; to resort to equivocation; to prevaricate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

verb

Meaning 11

To use arts or expedients; to make shift.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

12

verb

Meaning 12

To shove one way and the other; to push from one to another.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • to shuffle money from hand to hand

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

13

verb

Meaning 13

To remove or introduce by artificial confusion.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

14

noun

Meaning 14

walking with a slow dragging motion without lifting your feet

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • from his shambling I assumed he was very old

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shamble, shambling, shuffling

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: walk, walking

15

noun

Meaning 15

the act of mixing cards haphazardly

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shuffling, make

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: reordering

Narrower terms: reshuffle, reshuffling, riffle

16

verb

Meaning 16

mix so as to make a random order or arrangement

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • shuffle the cards

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ruffle, mix

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: manipulate

Narrower terms: reshuffle, riffle, cut

17

verb

Meaning 17

walk by dragging one's feet

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he shuffled out of the room
  • We heard his feet shuffling down the hall

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: scuffle, shamble

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: walk

Narrower terms: scuff, drag

18

verb

Meaning 18

move about, move back and forth

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • He shuffled his funds among different accounts in various countries so as to avoid the IRS

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: transfer, shift

History

Etymology

Originally the same word as scuffle, and properly a frequentative of shove.

Across languages

Translations

109 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Esperanto: miksado — act of shuffling cards
  • Finnish: sekoittaminen — act of shuffling cards
  • French: battage — act of shuffling cards
  • German: Mischen — act of shuffling cards
  • German: Mischeln — act of shuffling cards
  • German: Durchmischen — act of shuffling cards
  • Icelandic: stokkun — act of shuffling cards
  • Japanese: シャッフル (shaffuru) — act of shuffling cards
  • Kabuverdianu: barádja — act of shuffling cards
  • Persian: بر (bor) — act of shuffling cards
  • Portuguese: embaralhamento — act of shuffling cards
  • Portuguese: baralhar — act of shuffling cards
  • Russian: тасова́ние (tasovánije) — act of shuffling cards
  • Russian: переме́шивание (pereméšivanije) — act of shuffling cards
  • Slovak: miešanie — act of shuffling cards
  • Spanish: baraje — act of shuffling cards
  • Spanish: barajada — act of shuffling cards
  • Spanish: barajadura — act of shuffling cards
  • Turkish: karma — act of shuffling cards
  • Turkish: karmak — act of shuffling cards
  • Ukrainian: перемішування (peremišuvannja) — act of shuffling cards
  • Ukrainian: тасування (tasuvannja) — act of shuffling cards
  • German: Schlurfen — instance of walking without lifting one's feet
  • Hungarian: csoszogás — instance of walking without lifting one's feet
  • Ukrainian: човгання (čovhannja) — instance of walking without lifting one's feet
  • Amharic: በወዘ (bäwäzä) — to put in a random order
  • Arabic: خَلَطَ (ḵalaṭa) — to put in a random order
  • Armenian: խառնել (xaṙnel) — to put in a random order
  • Catalan: mesclar — to put in a random order
  • Catalan: barrejar — to put in a random order
  • Catalan: barallar — to put in a random order
  • Catalan: escartejar — to put in a random order
  • Chinese Mandarin: 洗牌 (xǐpái) — to put in a random order
  • Czech: míchat — to put in a random order
  • Czech: zamíchat — to put in a random order
  • Danish: blande — to put in a random order
  • Dutch: schudden — to put in a random order
  • Esperanto: miksi — to put in a random order
  • Finnish: sekoittaa — to put in a random order
  • French: battre — to put in a random order
  • French: mélanger — to put in a random order
  • German: mischen — to put in a random order
  • German: mischeln — to put in a random order
  • German: durchmischen — to put in a random order
  • Hebrew: ערבב (irbév) — to put in a random order
  • Hebrew: טָרַף (taráf) — to put in a random order
  • Icelandic: stokka — to put in a random order
  • Irish: suaith — to put in a random order
  • Irish: boscáil — to put in a random order
  • Italian: mescolare — to put in a random order
  • Italian: mischiare — to put in a random order
  • Kabuverdianu: baradja — to put in a random order
  • Khmer: លាយ (liəy) — to put in a random order
  • Khmer: សាប់ (sap) — to put in a random order
  • Khmer: ជ្រែ (crɛɛ) — to put in a random order
  • Korean: 뒤섞다 (dwiseokda) — to put in a random order
  • Latin: misceo — to put in a random order
  • Malay: bancuh — to put in a random order
  • Malay: gaul — to put in a random order
  • Māori: riwhi — to put in a random order
  • Māori: riwhiriwhi — to put in a random order
  • Mongolian: холих (xolix) — to put in a random order
  • Norman: faithe les cartes — to put in a random order
  • Polish: tasować — to put in a random order
  • Portuguese: embaralhar — to put in a random order
  • Portuguese: baralhar — to put in a random order
  • Russian: тасова́ть (tasovátʹ) — to put in a random order
  • Russian: перетасова́ть (peretasovátʹ) — to put in a random order
  • Russian: переме́шивать (pereméšivatʹ) — to put in a random order
  • Russian: перемеша́ть (peremešátʹ) — to put in a random order
  • Spanish: barajear — to put in a random order
  • Spanish: barajar — to put in a random order
  • Spanish: naipear — to put in a random order
  • Spanish: entreverar — to put in a random order
  • Swedish: blanda — to put in a random order
  • Turkish: karıştırmak — to put in a random order
  • Turkish: karmak — to put in a random order
  • Ukrainian: тасувати (tasuvaty) — to put in a random order
  • Vietnamese: trộn — to put in a random order
  • Vietnamese: xáo — to put in a random order
  • Yiddish: טאַשן (tashn) — to put in a random order
  • Afrikaans: skuifel — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Arabic: مَشَى يَجُرُّ قَدَمَيْهِ (mašā yajurru qadamayhi) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Arabic: رَسَفَ (rasafa) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Armenian: քստքստացնել (kʻstkʻstacʻnel) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Catalan: arrossegar els peus — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Czech: šourat se — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Czech: vléci se — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Czech: šinout se — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Danish: slentre — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Dutch: slenteren — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Finnish: laahustaa — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • French: traîner les pieds — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • German: schlurfen — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Hungarian: csoszog — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Italian: strascicare — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Italian: trascinarsi — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Korean: 질질 끌다 (jiljil kkeulda) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Māori: kōnekeneke — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Māori: hōnekeneke — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Māori: pīkari — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Polish: powłóczyć — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Portuguese: arrastar os pés — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Romanian: se târșâi — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Russian: ша́ркать (šárkatʹ) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Russian: волочи́ть но́ги (voločítʹ nógi) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Spanish: arrastrar — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • Ukrainian: човгати (čovhaty) — to walk without picking up one's feet
  • ǃXóõ: ʘxúũ — to walk without picking up one's feet
Real reading context

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