lottery
Americannoun
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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.
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any scheme for the distribution of prizes by chance.
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any happening or process that is or appears to be determined by chance.
to look upon life as a lottery.
noun
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a method of raising money by selling numbered tickets and giving a proportion of the money raised to holders of numbers drawn at random
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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
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an activity or endeavour the success of which is regarded as a matter of fate or luck
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of lottery
First recorded in 1560–70, lottery is from the Middle Dutch word loterie (whence also French loterie ). See lot, -ery
Explanation
A lottery is a contest where players buy tickets and have a random (and low) chance of winning. Finding true love and getting hit by lightning are often said to be as likely as winning the lottery. A lottery can be a state-run contest promising big bucks to the lucky winners, or a lottery can also be any contest where the winners are selected at random. For example, some schools choose students by using a lottery system. Regardless of the type of lottery, a lottery works where there is great demand for something and only a limited number of winners.
Vocabulary lists containing lottery
Workshop 3, Part 1
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Selection Vocabulary 2, Unit 1
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for April 16–April 22, 2022
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Leaving aside the tastelessness of comparing her death certificate to a lottery ticket, I doubt very much that it has any real-world parallels.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
But charter schools choose students by lottery, not based on academic ability.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The government said making the morning-after pill available free from pharmacies would end the "unfair" barriers and postcode lottery some women faced - with access varying dramatically depending on where they live.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
The Oregon Health Insurance Experiment studied a 2008 lottery in Oregon that gave some low-income uninsured adults the chance to enroll in Medicaid.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
My heart was pounding, as if Kim had announced that my family won a lottery and she was about to reveal how much.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
When it comes to lotteries, Mr. Kessler suggests asking a spouse, friend or grandparent to enter as well.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 8, 2026
What to know about dynamic pricing, lotteries and sale dates while trying to score seats.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2025
She said: "Encouragement from a writer of Hilary Mantel's stature is nothing short of transformative. It's like winning a thousand lotteries for debut writers."
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2025
It argues that all lotteries must be administered by the state under Pennsylvania law, and that Musk’s does not adhere to these guidelines.
From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2024
They kiss my cheeks and hold my hand and tell me how they won money in the kingdom's lotteries by betting on me to be named the favorite.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
