sweepstakes

[ sweep-steyks ]
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noun(used with a singular or plural verb)
  1. a race or other contest for which the prize consists of the stakes contributed by the various competitors.

  2. the prize itself.

  1. a lottery in which winning tickets are selected at random, each winning-ticket number then being matched to one of the horses nominated for or entered in a specific race, and the amounts paid the winners being determined by the finishing order of the horses that run.

  2. any gambling transaction in which each of a number of persons contributes a stake, and the stakes are awarded to one or several winners.

  3. a risky venture that promises large rewards: the high-tech sweepstakes.

Origin of sweepstakes

1
1485–95; earlier swepestake originally, a person who won all the stakes in a game; see sweep1, stake2, -s3

Words Nearby sweepstakes

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

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