Lottery is a form of gambling in which numbered tickets are sold and prizes are awarded to the holders in a drawing. It is often sponsored by a government as a means of raising money for public purposes. Also called lotto, lottery game, state lottery, and sweepstakes.
The earliest recorded lottery offers tickets for sale with prizes in the form of cash or goods were in the Low Countries in the 15th century, but records of private lotteries held at dinner parties since ancient times suggest that the practice is older. The word lotteries was probably derived from Latin Loteria, a game for the distribution of prizes by chance, from Middle Dutch Loterie, and perhaps via Old English hlot, a calque on Lot.
As a way of raising money for public purposes, state lotteries have become the norm in much of the world. They tend to generate significant revenues, but the size of the prizes is limited by state laws and budgetary considerations. Some of the profits are used for promoting the lottery, while others go towards prize winnings. A percentage is normally earmarked as administrative costs and profits for the organizer or sponsor.
Lottery marketing is usually targeted at specific segments of the population, with the aim of maximizing ticket sales. This has raised concerns about the extent to which it promotes gambling, with implications for poor people, problem gamblers, and children. In addition, because lottery operations are run as businesses, they operate at cross-purposes with public policy in terms of the broader social welfare goals.