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lottery (n.) 1560s, "arrangement for an awarding of prizes by chance among those buying tickets," from Italian lotteria , from lotto "lot, portion, share," from a Germanic source. It is cognate with Old English hlot (see lot (n.)), and compare lotto .
A competition based on chance, in which numbered tickets are sold and prizes are given to the holders of numbers drawn at random; esp. such a competition as a means of raising money for the state or a charity. Also occasionally as a mass noun: the action of playing in or running a lottery.
Etymology. Borrowed from Italian lotteria, from the same root as Old English hlot (cognate with English lot). ... lottery (plural lotteries) 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, ...
lottery. Etymology. [edit] 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. Pronunciation. [edit] (Received Pronunciation) IPA (key): /ˈlɒtəɹi/, /ˈlɒtɹi/ Audio (UK): (General American) IPA (key): /ˈlɑtɚi/
The English word lottery is derived from the Dutch noun "lot" meaning "fate". The first recorded Italian lottery was held on 9 January 1449 in Milan organized by the Golden Ambrosian Republic to finance the war against the Republic of Venice. However, it was in Genoa that Lotto became very popular.
The meaning of LOTTERY is a drawing of lots in which prizes are distributed to the winners among persons buying a chance. How to use lottery in a sentence.
lottery Etymology: The word "lottery" derives from the Middle Dutch word "lotterij" (or "lotterie"), which itself originates from the Old Low Franconian word "hlot," meaning a share or a portion.
The word was adopted from Germanic into the Romanic languages (Spanish lote, and compare lottery, lotto). Meaning "choice resulting from the casting of lots" first attested c. 1200. Meaning "share or portion of life" in any way, "that which is given by fate, God or destiny" is from c. 1300.
Lotto, the Italian National Lottery, is regarded as the basis for such modern gambling games as policy, the numbers game, keno, bingo, and lotto. Queen Elizabeth I chartered a general lottery in England in 1566 to raise money for repairing harbours and other public purposes.
English word lottery comes from Proto-Indo-European *klew-, and later Proto-Germanic *hlutą (Fate. Lot, share.)