lottery

[ lot-uh-ree ]
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noun,plural lot·ter·ies.
  1. a gambling game or method of raising money, as for some public charitable purpose, in which a large number of tickets are sold and a drawing is held for certain prizes.

  2. any scheme for the distribution of prizes by chance.

  1. any happening or process that is or appears to be determined by chance: to look upon life as a lottery.

Origin of lottery

1
First recorded in 1560–70, lottery is from the Middle Dutch word loterie (whence also French loterie). See lot, -ery

Other words from lottery

  • an·ti·lot·ter·y, adjective

Words Nearby lottery

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use lottery in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lottery

lottery

/ (ˈlɒtərɪ) /


nounplural -teries
  1. a method of raising money by selling numbered tickets and giving a proportion of the money raised to holders of numbers drawn at random

  2. a similar method of raising money in which players select a small group of numbers out of a larger group printed on a ticket. If a player's selection matches some or all of the numbers drawn at random the player wins a proportion of the prize fund

  1. an activity or endeavour the success of which is regarded as a matter of fate or luck

Origin of lottery

1
C16: from Old French loterie, from Middle Dutch loterije. See lot

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