Lottery (Latin sortilegij) means the casting of lots or decisions by chance. It is a form of gambling in which people pay money for a chance to receive something. People use the lottery to win cash prizes, goods, services, and even land. People also use the lottery to determine who will be members of a jury or panel. Modern lotteries are popular and often regulated by government agencies. Some have a fixed prize pool, while others are open to all players.

Making decisions and determining fates by the casting of lots has a long history in human societies, but public lotteries are only of relatively recent origin. The Continental Congress voted to establish a lottery in 1776 as a way to raise funds for the Revolution. Lotteries became very popular as a mechanism for obtaining “voluntary taxes,” and they were used to finance a number of public projects, including building Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Union and William and Mary colleges, and several city halls and Boston’s Faneuil Hall.

The success of lotteries reflects the fact that many Americans have an insatiable appetite for the possibility of winning big. The success of lotteries has also fueled irrational, risk-taking behavior and encouraged people to spend more than they can afford to lose. The popularity of lotteries also obscures the regressive nature of their impact on lower-income people. The growing dependence on lottery revenues is also problematic because it makes state budgets more vulnerable to changes in consumer demand and economic trends.