The lottery is a form of gambling in which numbers are drawn to determine a winner or winners. It can be played with a single number or with groups of numbers. The prize is usually cash or goods. It may be awarded on a lump-sum basis or in an annuity. Many people play the lottery to try and become rich, but there are risks involved.

Lotteries are a major source of revenue for state governments, and have received broad public approval. They have proved a particularly effective tool for raising funds in an anti-tax climate, since the proceeds are earmarked for specific purposes, such as education. Yet, as Clotfelter and Cook report, the objective fiscal circumstances of a state do not appear to influence whether or when it adopts a lottery.

Once a lottery is established, it becomes popular with specific constituencies, including convenience store operators (the primary distributors of tickets); suppliers to the lottery operation (heavy contributions by these businesses to state political campaigns are often reported); teachers in states where lotteries are earmarked for education; and state legislators who benefit from an extra source of revenue. However, lottery revenues typically expand rapidly after a state introduces it, then level off and sometimes even decline. This has led to a constant introduction of new games designed to maintain or increase sales and revenue. Some of these innovations have included scratch-off tickets, which have lower prizes but higher odds of winning than traditional lottery drawings.