Synonyms for cast lots
| Grammar : Verb |
| Spell : lot |
| Phonetic Transcription : lɒt |
Définition of cast lots
Origin :- Old English hlot "object (anything from dice to straw, but often a chip of wood with a name inscribed on it) used to determine someone's share," also "what falls to a person by lot," from Proto-Germanic *khlutom (cf. Old Norse hlutr "lot, share," Old Frisian hlot "lot," Old Saxon hlot, Middle Dutch, Dutch lot, Old High German hluz "share of land," German Los; Old English hleotan "to cast lots, to foretell"), of unknown origin. The object was placed with others in a receptacle, which was shaken, the winner being the one that fell out first. Hence, to cast lots. In some cases the lots were drawn by hand. The word was adopted from Germanic into the Romanic languages (cf. lottery, lotto). Meaning "choice resulting from the casting of lots" first attested c.1200.
- Sense of "plot of land" is first recorded 1630s (distribution of the best property in new settlements often determined by casting lots), that of "group, collection" is 1725, from notion of auction lots. The generalized sense of "great many" is first attested in 1812. To cast (one's) lot with another is to agree to share winnings.
- verb draw lots
- The eight victors stood forth and cast lots for new partners.
- Extract from : « Buried Cities, Part 2 » by Jennie Hall
- "You should have thought of that before you made us cast lots," she replied quickly.
- Extract from : « The Loyalist » by James Francis Barrett
- We cast lots, and it fell upon me to sail hither with Achilles.
- Extract from : « The Iliad » by Homer
- They had cast lots and lived on each other until but two remained.
- Extract from : « Seventy Years on the Frontier » by Alexander Majors
- Then came the men together and cast lots, drawing them from the helmet.
- Extract from : « Stories from Virgil » by Alfred J. Church
- Let us not tear it, but cast lots to settle whose it shall be.
- Extract from : « Hurlbut's Life of Christ For Young and Old » by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut
- They cast lots on the occasion, and it was the lot of Pompeius to feast them first.
- Extract from : « Plutarch's Lives, Volume IV » by Aubrey Stewart
- It was agreed that the younger guests should cast lots which should be the king of the feast.
- Extract from : « Darkness and Dawn » by Frederic W. Farrar
- Then Nestor said, “Let us cast lots who shall do battle with the mighty Hector.”
- Extract from : « Stories of the Old world » by Alfred John Church
- They cast lots to determine this, and the decision is for Moki.
- Extract from : « The Romance of the Colorado River » by Frederick S. Dellenbaugh
Words or expressions associated with your search
- 5-day forecast
- a lots
- air castle
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- bait-casting rod
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- be overcast
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- gyro pilots
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- half-caste
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- local forecast
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- lots
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- newscast
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- television broadcast
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- type cast
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- typecasting
- typecastings
- upcast
- weather forecast
Most wanted synonyms
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019