Lottery is a form of gambling run by state governments to raise money for various purposes. A lottery is a game of chance in which numbers are drawn at random and prizes are awarded to the winners. Lottery games may be either instant-win scratch-off tickets or daily drawing games in which players choose three or four numbers. The number of possible combinations is vast, and it is not unusual for a single number to appear many times in the course of a drawing.

Lotteries first emerged in the United States after 1776 and have since been adopted by most states, despite initial public reaction against them. Advocates of the lottery point to its value as a source of “painless” revenue, that is, a means of funding education, veterans’ health programs, and other public goods without raising taxes.

However, critics point out that the advertising of lotteries necessarily focuses on persuading target groups to spend their money, and that this is at cross-purposes with the state’s general interest in the well being of its citizens. Also, the practice of earmarking lottery proceeds to particular programs merely allows the legislature to reduce the amount of funds it would otherwise have to allot to these programs from its general fund.

Another common criticism is that the poor participate in lotteries at disproportionately lower levels than do other members of the population. A study by Clotfelter and Cook in the 1970s found that players of state lotteries come from middle-income neighborhoods, whereas most of the winning tickets are sold in upper-income areas.