DictionaryscuffleShuffling movement
verb

scuffle

To move with dragging or shuffling steps.

He scuffles down the hallway in loose slippers.

Etymology

Scuffle is associated with shuffling and dragging movement. This walking sense emphasizes short scraping steps rather than the better-known sense of a minor fight.

More examples

  • The tired children scuffled toward their beds.
  • I hear someone scuffling across the floor upstairs.
  • She scuffles through the fallen leaves without lifting her feet.

Forms

scuffle · scuffles · scuffled · scuffling

Similar words

shuffle
Emphasizes short steps with little lifting of the feet.
scuff
Scuff scrapes the feet or a surface; scuffle suggests a series of shuffling or dragging steps.