Shuffle
/ˈʃʌf.əl/noun
To drag or move one’s feet without lifting them properly, or to mix things up in a random order.
Did you know?The word likely developed from an older dialectal sense of moving clumsily or shuffling the feet, and its later card-game meaning is a perfect example of how ordinary motion words can become ritualized language.
Etymological Timeline
Late Middle English
English
schufflen / shovelen
“To move clumsily, drag the feet, or make a scraping motion”
15th–16th Century
English
shuffle
“To walk with an irregular dragging movement or to scrape along”
16th Century
English
shuffle (cards)
“To mix cards by moving them around in a disorderly way”
Modern English
English
shuffle
“To drag the feet, move awkwardly, or mix items into a random order”
Explore more surprising origins