random

A person you do not know or consider important.

• Some random sent me a message.
• The party was full of randoms.
• Why did you give our address to a total random?

Similar words: stranger, nobody

Common phrases: some random, a total random, random from somewhere

Chosen or arranged without a clear plan, purpose, or pattern.

• The names are in random order.
• She picked a random book from the shelf.
• He wrote down random words as they came to him.

Similar words: arbitrary, haphazard

Opposites: systematic

Common phrases: random order, random choice, random words

Happening without an obvious reason or predictable pattern.

• We heard random noises upstairs.
• The city has suffered several random attacks.
• A random encounter changed her plans for the day.

Similar words: haphazard, unpredictable

Opposites: predictable

Common phrases: random act, random attack, random event

Chosen by chance, with every possible choice equally likely.

• We chose a random sample of students.
• A random draw decided who went first.
• The computer makes a random selection from all eligible names.

Opposites: nonrandom

Common phrases: random sample, random selection, random draw

Having an uncertain result that can be described using mathematical chances.

• The model includes a random variable.
• We studied random processes in our statistics class.
• Each experiment produces a random outcome with a known probability.

Similar words: stochastic

Opposites: deterministic

Common phrases: random variable, random process, random outcome