RUFFLE

I. verb (~d; ruffling) Etymology: Middle English ruffelen; akin to Low German ruffelen to crumple Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. roughen , abrade , trouble , vex , to erect (as feathers) in or like a ruff, 3. to flip through (as pages), shuffle , to make into a ~, intransitive verb to become ~d , II. noun Date: 1534 commotion , brawl , a state or cause of irritation, 3. a strip of fabric gathered or pleated on one edge, ruff II,2, an unevenness or disturbance of surface ; ripple , ruffly adjective III. noun Etymology: ruff a drumbeat Date: circa 1802 a low vibrating drumbeat less loud than a roll