Link Centre Dictionary

raffle

UK/ˈɹæfl̩/ US/ˈræfʌl/ uncommon obsolete
noun (1) verb (1)

noun

1.

a lottery in which the prizes are goods rather than money

verb

1.

dispose of in a lottery

  • “We raffled off a trip to the Bahamas”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English rafle, from Old French rafle, raffle (“dice game", also "plundering”), from rafler (“to snatch, seize, carry off”), from Frankish *raffolōn, from Proto-Germanic *hrapōną, *hrēpōną (“to scratch, touch, pluck out, snatch”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kreb(h)-, *(s)kerb(h)- (“to turn, bend, shrink”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to turn, bend”). Cognate with Middle Dutch raffel (“dice game”), German raffen (“to snatch away, sweep off”), Old English hreppan (“to touch, treat, attack”).

Phrases

  • chook raffle
  • couldn't organise a two-ticket raffle
  • meat raffle
  • raffle sale

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.