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Synonyms

sweepstakes

American  
[sweep-steyks] / ˈswipˌsteɪks /

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.

  3. 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.

  4. lottery.

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

  6. a risky venture that promises large rewards.

    the high-tech sweepstakes.

Etymology

Origin of sweepstakes

1485–95; earlier swepestake originally, a person who won all the stakes in a game; sweep 1, stake 2, -s 3

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.

The Dodgers instead went after Blake Snell with a $182-million contract, and won the January sweepstakes for Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 25, 2025

Throw in a promotion or a sweepstakes, and we’ve got hours of content.

From Slate • Feb. 9, 2025

SAC Cross Country Invitational, including in the prominent meet’s team sweepstakes race.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 9, 2025

Several top Latin American prospects expected to sign with the Dodgers ultimately landed elsewhere, after the team communicated to its commits that they would have to wait to sign until the Sasaki sweepstakes had concluded.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2025

Mam wants to know if I won the sweepstakes and I tell her people give me tips.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

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.