lottery

noun

lot·​tery ˈlä-tə-rē How to pronounce lottery (audio)
also ˈlä-trē
plural lotteries
often attributive
1
a
: a drawing of lots in which prizes are distributed to the winners among persons buying a chance
b
: a drawing of lots used to decide something
2
: an event or affair whose outcome is or seems to be determined by chance

Examples of lottery in a Sentence

They held a lottery to determine who could get a green card. Room assignments are determined by lottery. Life's a lottery, isn't it? It all depends on luck.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To have a chance chance, visitors will have to pay hundreds of dollars to enter a lottery-style ballot. — Maureen O'Hare, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026 Buying a $20 lottery ticket is optimistic, but the payoff was 100,000 times that amount for a Gaston County woman, according to the North Carolina Education Lottery. — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 23 Oct. 2026 When rents are not allowed to rise to market rates, apartments are rationed through waiting, connections, lotteries and luck. — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2026 But students in more affluent schools, where Asian American students are concentrated, must perform better on the standardized exam to enter the lottery. — Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lottery

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French loterie, probably borrowed from Middle Dutch loterye, from loten "to draw lots" (derivative of lot "lot, prediction, destiny," going back to Germanic *hluta-) + -erye -ery — more at lot entry 1

Note: Alternatively the Middle Dutch word could have been borrowed from Middle French loterie (despite the French word's later date), perhaps a calque on Middle Dutch lotinge "action of drawing lots" (thus the Oxford English Dictionary, third edition). The earliest state-sponsored lotteries in Europe were held in the cities of Flanders in the first half of the 15th century. The first English state lottery was held in 1569, with advertisements using the word lotterie having been printed two years earlier.

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of lottery was in 1567

Phrases Containing lottery

Rhymes for lottery

See All Rhymes for lottery

Browse Nearby Words

lotter
lottery
lottery bond
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Cite this Entry

“Lottery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lottery. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

lottery

noun
lot·​tery ˈlät-ə-rē How to pronounce lottery (audio)
ˈlä-trē
plural lotteries
: a drawing of lots in which prizes are given to the winning names or numbers

More from Merriam-Webster on lottery

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about lottery

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