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n. [countable] a gambling game in which tickets are sold for a chance to win a prize by random selection of numbers or names; a system for allocating money or goods:
The state-run lottery is the official method of raising funds in many countries, including the United States. It is also popular in other places, such as Australia and South Africa. In addition to the main lotteries, there are many private lotteries that offer prizes to ticket holders. A prize can be cash or goods, or both. Some lotteries have a fixed prize amount, while others use a percentage of the proceeds as their prize fund.
Lotteries have been around for centuries, and were used by the ancient Hebrews, Romans, and Saxons to give away land and slaves. They are a form of gambling, and their popularity has been fueled by advertising campaigns that emphasize the possibility of winning big. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, American leaders like Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin organized lotteries to raise funds for their own projects.
Some states have laws against private lotteries, but the number of legal lotteries in the United States has steadily grown since the 1970s. The two largest are Powerball and Mega Millions, which have a large geographic footprint and often carry higher jackpots than other games.