shuffle

American  

[shuhf-uhl] / ˈʃʌf əl /

verb (used without object)

• shuffles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• shuffled,
  past participle,  past
• shuffling
  present participle

1. to walk without lifting the feet or with clumsy steps and a shambling gait.

2. to scrape the feet over the floor in dancing.

3. to move clumsily (usually followed byinto ).

   to shuffle into one's clothes.

4. to act underhandedly or evasively with respect to a stated situation (often followed by in, into, orout of ).

   to shuffle out of one's responsibilities.

5. to intermix so as to change the relative positions of cards in a pack.

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verb (used with object)

• shuffles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• shuffled,
  past participle,  past
• shuffling
  present participle

1. to move (one's feet) along the ground or floor without lifting them.

   Synonyms:

   scuff, scrape, drag

2. to perform (a dance) with such movements.

3. to move (an object or objects) this way and that.

4. to put, thrust, or bring trickily, evasively, or haphazardly (usually followed by in, into, out, etc.).

   to shuffle one's way into favor.

5. to mix (cards in a pack) so as to change the relative positions.

6. to jumble together, mix, or interchange the positions of (objects).

noun

• shuffles
  plural

1. a scraping movement; dragging gait.

2. an evasive trick; evasion.

3. an act or instance of shuffling.

4. Cards.

   1. a shuffling of cards in a pack.

   2. the right or turn to shuffle preparatory to dealing.

      You win the shuffle.

5. a dance in which the feet are shuffled along the floor.

verb phrase

1. shuffle off

   1. to thrust aside; get rid of.

   2. to move away by, or as if by, shuffling.

      They shuffled off to school with little enthusiasm.

shuffle British  

/ ˈʃʌfəl /

verb

1. to walk or move (the feet) with a slow dragging motion

2. to change the position of (something), esp quickly or in order to deceive others

3. (tr) to mix together in a careless manner

   he shuffled the papers nervously

4. to mix up (cards in a pack) to change their order

5. (intr) to behave in an awkward, evasive, or underhand manner; equivocate

6. to move or cause to move clumsily

   he shuffled out of the door

7. (intr) to dance the shuffle

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noun

1. the act or an instance of shuffling

2. a dance or dance step with short dragging movements of the feet

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• shuffler
  noun
• reshuffle
  verb
• unshuffled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• shuffles
  plural

Participles

• shuffling
  present
• shuffled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• shuffle
  simple
• shuffles
  simple
• have shuffled
  perfect
• has shuffled
  perfect
• am shuffling
  progressive
• are shuffling
  progressive
• is shuffling
  progressive
• have been shuffling
  perfect progressive
• has been shuffling
  perfect progressive

Past

• shuffled
  simple
• had shuffled
  perfect
• was shuffling
  progressive
• were shuffling
  progressive
• had been shuffling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will shuffle
  simple
• will have shuffled
  perfect
• will be shuffling
  progressive
• will have been shuffling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of shuffle

1525–35; < Low German schuffeln to walk clumsily or with dragging feet, mix (cards); akin to shovel

Explanation

To shuffle is to drag your feet slowly along the ground as you walk. A kid might shuffle reluctantly off to his room only after being told five times that it's bedtime. Shuffle also means to wiggle around, like if you shuffle uncomfortably in your seat while watching a five-hour movie. If you get lost in the shuffle, you’re lost in the crowd. Another way to use shuffle is to mean "mix up in a random way," as you do with a deck of cards before dealing a hand. Shuffle probably comes from the Low German word schuffeln, which means both "to walk clumsily" and "to deal dishonestly."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shuffle shuffles shuffled shuffling

Kris Rehl, an organizer with LA Street Care and the Abolish 41.18 Campaign, contends that no-encampment zones serve only to shuffle homeless people from one area to another.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

They shuffle their feet to Whitney Houston’s “Love Is a Contact Sport,” while another dancer hops on a pole and spins.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

In February, PayPal announced that Lores would take over as CEO in a surprise shuffle.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

The president developed his own trademark dance to accompany the song -- a stiff shuffle of the hips and fist bumps at waist-high level.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

I shuffle my feet and look at the ground and hope he leaves me alone.

From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée

The eight-speed transmission shuffles up to overdrive as soon as the throttle pressure slackens.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

Heineken’s move is the latest of CEO shuffles in the food and beverage industries.

From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026

Malik said 41.18 is “not a policy that solves homelessness,” but instead shuffles homeless people from street to street and district to district.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

That Garbus shuffles late-night bits into the action punctuates the blur of corporate interests and celebrity that the Murdochs represent.

From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026

She chuckles and shuffles to a fresh exam.

From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau

Jason Beaman, a Navy and Army vet, was shuffled among therapists who later left until he finally had enough.

From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026

The company has also shuffled its lower ranks over that time.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026

The dysfunction starts in the early grades and worsens as children are shuffled through the system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Roughly a dozen people at the if-you-know-you-know event grooved and shuffled to EDM music while kayak enthusiasts paddled by and locals fished for carp.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

They shuffled silently and slowly back to the road, past the indifferent bees.

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

To accommodate his bat, the team is shuffling three of its infielders, allowing him to stay at second.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

“Zone One” is a smart take on the shuffling hordes and pandemic survivors who try to take Manhattan back.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

Those supports are a vital part of a long-term-care plan, and could do more to help stretch funds than any shuffling around of index funds or tax strategizing.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026

An AFP journalist captured rare footage at Al-Rahmaniyah camp showing exhausted women shuffling under a punishing sun, jerrycans swaying on their heads after hours spent waiting for water at a distant well.

From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026

The heliograms struggled to project, frozen in a sheet of ice while shuffling through her previous “faces” before she'd been sentenced to life in prison.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

Related Words

• drag
• limp
• straggle
• stumble