Etymologically
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lottery

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈlɒtəɹi/, /ˈlɒtɹi/ (UK); /ˈlɑtɚi/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French loterie,[2][3][4] from Middle Dutch loterje,[2][3][4][5] from lot “share, lot”.[2][3][4][5] Etymonline traces the English word instead to Italian lotteria, from lotto “lot, portion”, of Germanic origin.[6] It is related to lot and lotto.[2][6][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

An arrangement for distributing prizes by chance among people who buy tickets (1567).[7][3][4]

Semantic evolution

Etymonline notes that lotteries were formerly used to raise money for the state or for charity.[6] From 1570 the word also meant the casting of lots, or chance in general, a sense now obsolete,[7] and from 1596 it was used figuratively of anything decided by chance.[7][2][5] In 1830 it was the name of a round game of cards.[7]

Timeline

  • 1567 – a distribution of prizes by chance.[7][3][4]
  • 1570 – decision by lot; chance, now obsolete.[7]
  • 1596 – figurative, anything decided by chance.[7]
  • 1830 – a card game.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A contest or gambling game in which tickets are sold and prizes go to those whose tickets are chosen in a random drawing.
  2. A selection made by drawing lots.
  3. An activity or event whose outcome seems to depend on fate or chance.
  • lot
  • lotto
  • allot

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press