Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to practise a confidence trick, a hoax or a deception; thus shuffling n. and adj; shufflems, a trickster.

1639		R. Davenport New Tricke to Cheat the Divell I ii: I doe not like this shuffling.
1668		J. Wilson (trans.) Erasmus Moriae Encomium (1509) 85: Our Merchants [...] swear and forswear, steal, cozen, and cheat, yet shufle themselves into the first rank.
1732		Proceedings at Sessions (City of London) July 159/2: On farther Talk, I found he Shuffled [...] upon which I sent for a Constable.
1741		Secret Hist. of Betty Ireland (9 edn) 41: He shuffled with Betty, and drew Money from her continually under a Pretence of carrying on a Law-suit.
1751		W. Kenrick Falstaff’s Wedding (1766) I v: You have thus shuffled off and on me, a good while; but I must, I must be paid.
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue n.p.: Shuffle, To make use of false pretences, or unfair shifts.
1793		F. Reynolds How to Grow Rich V i: Mind you’re not tricked again – For that Latitat is such a dirty shuffling rascal.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum [as cit. 1785] .
1815		‘Shufflers’ in City of London Collection 7: For shuffling and cheating is now all the plan.
1820		Irishman (Belfast) 29 Dec. 4/1: Has any body yet imputed shuffling [...] to him.
1833		‘Flare Up!’ in Rake’s Budget in Spedding & Watt (eds) Bawdy Songbooks (2011) III 65: Poll Fluffy, she stood near six feet, / Shufflems, queerems, she stood no gammon.
1834		Belfast News Ltr 4 Feb. 4/2: No Sir; but you are swearin’ it, so I’ll have no shufflin’ [i.e. under oath].
1837		A. Greene Glance at N.Y. I iii: harry: Here we are! Mind, Mose, no ecstacies, or you’ll betray us. mose: Don’t be alarmed about me. I can shuffle through.
1844		A. Smith Adventures of Mr.Ledbury II 275: The majority of you are shuffling humbugs!
1853		H. Hayman Pawnbroker’s Daughter 16: Like a good player with indifferent cards, he would use to his best advantage [...] his adroitness in shuffling.
1861		(con. 1840s–50s) H. Mayhew London Labour and London Poor IV 420/2: You comprehend me perfectly well; don’t pretend you don’t – that is only shuffling.
c.1864		‘A Political Catechism’ in C. Hindley Curiosities of Street Lit. (1871) 73: Flare up and be a brick / And none of your shuffling tricks.
1876		Western Dly Press 29 Nov. 5/2: To his mind the shuffling tricks of the professional diplomatist are utterly abhorrent.
1880		Jarrow Exp. 23 Jan. 4/3: The shuffling tricks resorted to [...] whereby the public are gulled into the belief they are receiving benefit.
1898		Montgomery Advertiser (AL) 20 Mar. 4/4: He will have none of their shuffling and tricks.
1906		Shoreditch Obs. 6 Jan. 6/3: The shuffling tricks and devices of Mr Balfour, have so shaken the faith of the masses.
1928		Northern Whig (Belfast) 10 Mar. 8/1: It grows more and more amusing to watch the suffling tricks to which Mr Ramsay Macdonald is being driven [...] to satisfy his supporters.
1952		W.R. Burnett Little Men, Big World 179: A panel joint is a fast shuffling clip.
2012		L.A. Times 19 July 2/4: ‘How many people in California can explain the triple flip?’ he adds, referring to a tax shuffling trick.

2. (US street gang) to have a fist-fight.

1959

H. Salisbury Shook-Up Generation (1961) 26: Oh, you figured you might have to shuffle, eh?

3. (US prison) to play the passive role in a homosexual couple.

1983

N. Heard House of Slammers 8: Many of the confined dudes considered it a kind of unreal game [...] so they shuffled as easily as they dealt.