A lottery is a form of gambling in which tickets bearing numbers are sold for the chance to win a prize. It is usually sponsored by a government or an organization and conducted on a national scale. Prizes may be money, goods, or services. In a modern lottery, the winning ticket is selected by drawing lots or a computerized program. A ticket holder can also choose to participate in a scratch-off game, wherein a panel of dots is wiped away to reveal a prize-winning combination of numbers or symbols.

Lottery games are popular and widespread. In the United States, for example, they generate over $30 billion in annual revenues and are played by a large percentage of the population. They have become the primary source of state revenue for education and other social programs.

Despite the enormous popularity of the lottery, there are concerns about its distribution and impact on society. As a form of gambling, it tends to attract low-income individuals, and its promotion may have unintended consequences for the poor and problem gamblers. In addition, there are concerns about the integrity of the lottery system and its effectiveness as a means of raising funds for public purposes.

Although making decisions and determining fates by casting lots has a long history in human culture, the use of lotteries for material gain is much more recent. The first recorded lotteries in Europe were held for municipal repairs in Rome under Augustus Caesar, and the first public lottery to distribute prize money was held in Bruges in 1466.