lottery
/ˈlɒtəɹi/
"lottery" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“lottery” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,154 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #7,154
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 7
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A scheme for the distribution of prizes by lot or chance, especially a gaming scheme in which one or more tickets bearing particular numbers draw prizes, the other tickets are blanks.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | lottery |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈlɒtəɹi/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #7,154 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 7 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “lottery” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for lottery is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈlɒtəɹi/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,154 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for lottery, with forms such as "llottery", "lotery", and "lotetry". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "lowery", "lotte", "letter", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Italian lotteria, from the same root as Old English hlot (cognate with English lot). Compare French loterie (from Middle Dutch loterie). By surface analysis, lot + -ery. The correct English form is lottery, spelled L-O-T-T-E-R-Y.
Definition
- 1A scheme for the distribution of prizes by lot or chance, especially a gaming scheme in which one or more tickets bearing particular numbers draw prizes, the other tickets are blanks.
- 2Something decided by chance.
- 3Allotment; a thing allotted.
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian lotteria, from the same root as Old English hlot (cognate with English lot). Compare French loterie (from Middle Dutch loterie). By surface analysis, lot + -ery.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: llottery,lotery,lotetry,lotterry,lotteryy,lotteyr,lottrey,ltotery,olttery
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of lottery - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "lottery"?
What does "lottery" mean?
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Using “lottery”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is L-O-T-T-E-R-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈlɒtəɹi/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “lowery” - see the side-by-side comparison. lottery vs lowery
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.