Lottery

//ˈlɒtəɹi// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A scheme for the distribution of prizes by lot or chance, especially a gaming scheme in which one or more tickets bearing particular numbers draw prizes, the other tickets are blanks.

    "Dave plays the lottery almost every week, but always picks different numbers."

  2. 2
    players buy (or are given) chances and prizes are distributed by casting lots wordnet
  3. 3
    Something decided by chance. figuratively

    "It's a bit of a lottery whether we'll get a good table in that diner."

  4. 4
    something that is regarded as a chance event wordnet
  5. 5
    Allotment; a thing allotted. obsolete

Synonyms

All synonyms
bingoblackjackbridgedrawinggamekeno

Example

More examples

"My mother prefers the arbitrary selection of the lottery machines over my lucky numbers."

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian lotteria, from the same root as Old English hlot (cognate with English lot). Compare French loterie (from Middle Dutch loterie). By surface analysis, lot + -ery.

Related phrases

St. Petersburg lotterydraft lotterye-lotterygenetic lotteryghetto lotteryladder lotterylottery ticketnigger lotterypostcode lotterysilicon lotteryvideo lottery terminalwin the lottery

More for "lottery"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.