lottery Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun something that is regarded as a chance event
    • the election was just a lottery to them
  2. noun players buy (or are given) chances and prizes are distributed by casting lots
    drawing.

WordNet

Lot"ter*y noun
Etymology
Lot + -ery, as in brewery, bindery.
Wordforms
plural Lotteries
Definitions
  1. A scheme for the distribution of prizes by lot or chance; esp., a gaming scheme in which one or more tickets bearing particular numbers draw prizes, and the rest of tickets are blanks. Fig. : An affair of chance. ✍ The laws of the United States and of most of the States make lotteries illegal. except those conducted by the states themselves
  2. Allotment; thing allotted. Obs. Shak.

Webster 1913