riffle
1 of 2verb
rif·fle ˈri-fəl 
riffled; riffling ˈri-f(ə-)liŋ
intransitive verb
1
: to form, flow over, or move in riffles
2
: to flip cursorily : thumb
riffle through the catalog
transitive verb
1
: to ruffle slightly : ripple
2
a
: to leaf through hastily
specifically : to leaf by sliding a thumb along the edge of the leaves
riffle a stack of paper
b
: to shuffle (playing cards) by separating the deck into two parts and riffling with the thumbs so the cards intermix
3
: to manipulate (small objects) idly between the fingers
riffle
2 of 2noun
1
a
: a shallow extending across a streambed and causing broken water
b
: a stretch of water flowing over a riffle
2
: a small wave or succession of small waves : ripple
3
a
: any of various contrivances (such as blocks or rails) laid on the bottom of a sluice or launder to make a series of grooves or interstices to catch and retain a mineral (such as gold)
b
: a groove or interstice so formed
4
: a cleat or bar fastened to an inclined surface in a gold-washing apparatus to catch and hold mineral grains
5
[riffle entry 1]
a
: the act or process of shuffling something (such as a deck of cards)
b
: the sound made while doing this
Synonyms
Verb
- flip
- leaf
- skim
- thumb
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb He riffled the pages of the magazine. Web research is convenient but doesn't offer the tactile pleasures of riffling through heavy old books.
Recent Examples on the Web
Amy Schulman, PEOPLE.com, 6 May 2022 Two Guns spread through madly riffling brush, the path crunching under my hiking boots going uphill. Chris Malloy, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 June 2020 To simulate clapping, kids could be hired to ride their bikes around the cart paths, with playing cards clipped to the bike frames to riffle in the spokes. Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 16 May 2020 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 Justin Herbert with a ton of time, riffles a 28-yard laser to Johnny Johnson III for a touchdown. oregonlive, 30 Nov. 2019 AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2022 Online and at gun shows his company sells a range of gear from ballistic helmets to concealable armor to military-style vests that are able to take several hits from riffle rounds. Nathan Luna, ABC News, 17 June 2022 The riffle beetle lives in the water but can’t swim, and has wings but can’t fly. Annie Blanks, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Jan. 2022 This particular riffle had six species, including the Texas logperch and the Guadalupe bass, both of which have been historically scarce in the Mission Reach. Elena Bruess, San Antonio Express-News, 27 Nov. 2021 Durkalec suggested targeting the river waters from the first riffle down to Lake Erie, and reported that successful anglers are pitching casting spoons, in-line spinners and small diving plugs. cleveland, 30 Sep. 2021 Not long after comes a series of little 10-inch browns, all eager to eat in the same riffle, then a nice rainbow, and then, amazingly, a 14-inch brookie. Frank Sargeant, al, 8 Aug. 2021 Meacham’s long riffle through the files of the totally familiar is not without some interesting findings. Thomas Frank, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021 Steve dropped his fly into a riffle near the bank and instantly brought out a 8-inch rainbow. R. Gregory Nokes | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 9 Dec. 2020 See More
Verb
Keep reading to check out more weekend deals, or head straight to Amazon to riffle through everything else that's on sale right now. Amy Schulman, PEOPLE.com, 6 May 2022 Two Guns spread through madly riffling brush, the path crunching under my hiking boots going uphill. Chris Malloy, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 June 2020 To simulate clapping, kids could be hired to ride their bikes around the cart paths, with playing cards clipped to the bike frames to riffle in the spokes. Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 16 May 2020 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 The Watergate hearings, which stretched into 1974, played like Shakespeare spliced with courtroom drama: riffling papers, conspirators, men in the wings and the penetrating southern drawl of Sen. Sam Ervin, which reverberated with moral urgency. Jeffrey Fleishman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Oct. 2019 Justin Herbert with a ton of time, riffles a 28-yard laser to Johnny Johnson III for a touchdown. oregonlive, 30 Nov. 2019 Noun
Benson’s friend, river guide Pete Lefebvre, pointed to a muddy riffle upstream of the ramp, near where the Dirty Devil River meets the Colorado, fresh evidence of a fast-changing landscape. AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2022 Online and at gun shows his company sells a range of gear from ballistic helmets to concealable armor to military-style vests that are able to take several hits from riffle rounds. Nathan Luna, ABC News, 17 June 2022 The riffle beetle lives in the water but can’t swim, and has wings but can’t fly. Annie Blanks, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Jan. 2022 This particular riffle had six species, including the Texas logperch and the Guadalupe bass, both of which have been historically scarce in the Mission Reach. Elena Bruess, San Antonio Express-News, 27 Nov. 2021 Durkalec suggested targeting the river waters from the first riffle down to Lake Erie, and reported that successful anglers are pitching casting spoons, in-line spinners and small diving plugs. cleveland, 30 Sep. 2021 Not long after comes a series of little 10-inch browns, all eager to eat in the same riffle, then a nice rainbow, and then, amazingly, a 14-inch brookie. Frank Sargeant, al, 8 Aug. 2021 Meacham’s long riffle through the files of the totally familiar is not without some interesting findings. Thomas Frank, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021 Steve dropped his fly into a riffle near the bank and instantly brought out a 8-inch rainbow. R. Gregory Nokes | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 9 Dec. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun and Verb
perhaps alteration of ruffle
First Known Use
Verb
1754, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Noun
1785, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Phrases Containing riffle
Kids Definition
riffle 1 of 2
verb
rif·fle ˈri-fəl
riffled; riffling
1
: to move lightly
Wind riffled the bird's feathers.
2
: to look through quickly
I riffled through a magazine.
riffle
2 of 2noun
1
: a shallow area of a stream bed that causes ripples
2
: ripple entry 2 sense 1
riffles 1 of 2
verb
as in flips
to turn over pages in an idle or cursory manner Web research is convenient but doesn't offer the tactile pleasures of riffling through heavy old books Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- flips
- skims
- leafs
- thumbs
- dips
- scans
- browses
- looks over
- glances (at)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- pores (over)
- studies
riffles
2 of 2noun
as in wavelets
Synonyms & Similar Words
- wavelets
- rollers
- curls
- ripples
- combers
- waves
- whitecaps
- breakers
- seas
- ground swells
- tidal waves
- surges
- tsunamis
- tsunami
- surfs
- billows
- swells