# lottery

Pronunciation: US say "LOT-ur-ee" /ˈlɑtɚi/; UK say "LOT-uh-ree" /ˈlɒtəɹi/

## Noun

1. A scheme for handing out prizes by chance, in which numbered tickets are drawn and only some win while the rest come up blank.
   - Simple: A game where people buy numbered tickets, and the drawn numbers win prizes.
   - _The state lottery raised millions of dollars for public schools last year._
   - _Thousands enter the national lottery each week, but only a handful ever claim prizes._
2. Any matter whose outcome is determined by chance rather than by merit or effort.
   - Simple: Something that is decided by luck, not by skill or choice.
   - _For many families, finding affordable housing has become a cruel lottery._
   - _Whether a submitted manuscript ever gets read at all is something of a lottery._

## Noun

3. A portion or share assigned to a person; that which falls to one as an allotted part. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A share or part that is given to someone as their own.

## Origin

Borrowed from Italian "lotteria," which comes from the same root as Old English "hlot" (related to English "lot"); compare French "loterie." It can be seen as "lot" plus "-ery."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/lottery (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).