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raffle

 [raf-uhl]   Origin

raf·fle

1   [raf-uhl] noun, verb, -fled, -fling.
noun
1.
a form of lottery in which a number of persons buy one or more chances to win a prize.
verb (used with object)
2.
to dispose of by a raffle (often followed by off): to raffle off a watch.

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Raffle is one of our favorite verbs.
So is peculate. Does it mean:
to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.
to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.
LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
verb (used without object)
3.
to take part in a raffle.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English rafle dice game < Middle French, derivative of rafler to snatch; compare raff

Related forms
raf·fler, noun
un·raf·fled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged

raf·fle

2   [raf-uhl]
noun
1.
rubbish.
2.
Nautical. a tangle, as of ropes, canvas, etc.
Origin:
1790–1800; raff + -le
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To raffle
Collins
World English Dictionary
raffle (ˈræfəl)
 
—n
1.  a.  a lottery in which the prizes are goods rather than money
 b.  (as modifier): a raffle ticket
 
—vb (often foll by off)
2.  to dispose of (goods) in a raffle
 
[C14 (a dice game): from Old French, of obscure origin]
 
'raffler
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

raffle
late 14c., from O.Fr. rafle "dice game," also "plundering," perhaps from a Gmc. source (cf. M.Du. raffel "dice game," O.Fris. hreppa "to move," O.N. hreppa "to reach, get," Ger. raffen "to snatch away, sweep off"), from P.Gmc. *khrap- "to pluck out, snatch off." The notion would be "to sweep up (the
EXPAND
stakes), to snatch (the winnings)." Dietz connects the O.Fr. word with the Gmc. root, but OED is against this. Meaning "sale of chances" first recorded 1766.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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