English Explanatory Dictionary

ballot

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A small ball placed in a container to cast a vote; now, by extension, a piece of paper or card used for this purpose, or some other means used to signify a vote.
  2. The process of voting, especially in secret; a round of voting.
  3. The total of all the votes cast in an election.
  4. A list of candidates running for office; a ticket.
verb
  1. To vote or decide by ballot.
  2. To draw lots.
  3. To invite to vote on a proposal.

Pronunciation

/ˈbælət/ en-au-ballot.ogg LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-ballot.wav

Word forms

ballot ballots balloting balloted

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian balota (obsolete), ballotta (“small ball, especially one used to register a vote”), from balla (“bale, bundle”) + -otta (suffix forming diminutive nouns); or from Middle French balote (obsolete), ballotte (“small ball used to register a vote”) (also compare Middle French balotiage, French ballottage (“second ballot, runoff”)); both ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *ballu (“ball”), from Proto-Germanic *balluz (“ball”).

Synonyms

ballot paper voting slip

Related words

blackballing

Derived words

absentee ballot Australian ballot ballotation ballot box ballot candy ballot chasing ballot collecting ballot curing balloter ballotful ballot harvesting ballotist ballotless bedsheet ballot blanket ballot bullet ballot butterfly ballot down-ballot e-ballot long ballot Massachusetts ballot paper ballot postal ballot preballot ranked ballot secret ballot short ballot straw ballot reballot
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on B Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary