ENGLISH
REFERENCE

shuffle

n. uncountable
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈʃəfəɫ// UK //ʃˈʌfəl// shuf·fle

n. a way of playing music where the songs are chosen in a random order. You use this when you want to be surprised by what plays next.

n. a mode of operation in digital music players that randomises the playback order of a playlist or library.


SIMPLE

I put my playlist on shuffle while I clean the house.

CONTEXTUAL

The listener enabled shuffle to avoid hearing the same sequence of tracks every morning on the train.

COMPLEX

Modern streaming algorithms often replace a true mathematical shuffle with a weighted system that prioritises a user's favourite artists while maintaining the illusion of randomness.

Synonyms
Origin

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

Usage

Often used in the prepositional phrase 'on shuffle'.

Idioms2 entries

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