noun / verb

riffle

RIF-ul/ˈrɪfl/

A quick flipping through pages or shuffling of cards.

He riffles through a book, letting the pages flutter beneath his thumb.

Close-up of a man rapidly releasing the bent page edges of a book with his thumb, making a visibly fluttering fan of pages rather than turning one page.

Etymology

The card-shuffling sense may imitate sound rather than derive from an identifiable root. From shuffling cards, riffle developed the meaning of quickly leafing through papers or pages.

In context

Shin Lim0:28

I'm gonna riffle down the deck like this and then you just say stop anytime you want

Reporter can’t figure out what’s happening

More examples

I riffled through the receipts to find the missing payment.
The dealer riffles the cards before each round.
A quick riffle through the folder reveals the signed contract.

Forms

riffle · riffles · riffled · riffling

Similar words

flip: Can describe turning just one page, rather than many.
shuffle: Emphasizes mixing cards, not simply flipping through them.
scan: Emphasizes looking for information, not physically moving pages.