ballot

1 of 2

noun

bal·​lot ˈba-lət 

1

a

: a small ball used in secret voting

b

: a sheet of paper used to cast a secret vote

2

a

: the action or system of secret voting

b

: the right to vote

c

: vote sense 1a

3

: the number of votes cast

4

: the drawing of lots

ballot

2 of 2

verb

balloted; balloting; ballots

intransitive verb

: to vote or decide by ballot

balloter noun

Did you know?

When people voted in ancient Athens, they dropped pebbles into an urn. Similarly, when voting was done by the people of Venice during the Renaissance, secrecy was assured by the use of little colored or marked balls. The Italian word for “little ball” is ballotta, from balla, meaning “ball,” and the diminutive suffix –otta. Now any kind of secret voting, by ball, piece of paper, or voting machine, is called a ballot. So is the right to vote itself.

Synonyms

Noun

• vote

Examples of ballot in a Sentence

Noun

They cast their votes in a secret ballot.

She was elected by secret ballot.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Remember, individuals can only hand-deliver up to two ballots. —Jeremy Yurow, USA TODAY, 23 Apr. 2024

In 1948, Smith cast his first presidential ballot for Thomas. —Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 22 Apr. 2024

Ten other ballots were either voided or challenged, while the remaining 703 workers didn’t participate. —William Gavin, Quartz, 22 Apr. 2024

For the first time ever, Michigan's top officials and state lawmakers disclosed information about their personal finances after voters passed a ballot measure mandating the reports under the state constitution. —Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024

In 1990, the last time his name appeared on an Arkansas ballot, Pryor captured 99.8% of the vote. —Frank E. Lockwood, arkansasonline.com, 20 Apr. 2024

Democratic Party members are already trying to block Kennedy from getting on the ballot in Hawaii and Michigan. —Allison Novelo, CBS News, 20 Apr. 2024

No one knows; ballot access deadlines don’t hit for months. —David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2024

The council is expected to decide this summer whether the measures will make the ballot. —David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2024

Verb

Penix guided the Huskies to the national championship game and finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting behind another transfer quarterback, LSU’s Jayden Daniels, and one spot ahead of NIx. —John Zenor, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2024

Recommended In historic case, justices look ready to return Trump to ballot In short, policies that take money away from poor people often prevent them from transcending generational poverty. —Courtney E. Martin, The Christian Science Monitor, 12 Feb. 2024

These secret-ballot votes marked the most divisive party caucus balloting for speaker over the past three decades, rivaled only by Nancy Pelosi’s support from just over two-thirds of the Democratic caucus after the 2016 election to remain Democratic leader. —Geoffrey Skelley, ABC News, 19 Oct. 2023

The 47-year-old Manning played quarterback at Tennessee from 1994-97, leading the Volunteers to an SEC championship and finishing second in the Heisman Trophy balloting his senior year. —Creg Stephenson | [e-mail], al, 14 Aug. 2023

Lamet, who finished fourth in National League Cy Young balloting in 2020, had a 3.72 ERA with 16 strikeouts and seven walks in 19⅓ innings with the WooSox. —Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2023

Mauer was a catcher who won an MVP and three batting titles, and finished in the top 10 in MVP balloting four times. —Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 21 July 2023

Gordon went on to deliver a sensational final two seasons with UW in 2013-14, capping it with 2,587 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns as a junior, en route to a runner-up finish in the Heisman Trophy balloting behind Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota. —Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 18 July 2023

However, by early June, many health staff were still holding out for more, other rail unions were engaging in sporadic protests and teachers were being balloted on further walkouts during England’s next academic year, which begins in September. —Tom Rees, Bloomberg.com, 10 Jan. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Italian ballotta, from Italian dialect, diminutive of balla ball — more at balloon

First Known Use

Noun

1549, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1603, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ballot

• absentee ballot
• Australian ballot
• ballot box
• cast one's ballot
• down-ballot
• on the ballot
• rig the ballot
• secret ballot
• short ballot
• stuff the ballot box

Kids Definition

ballot

1 of 2 noun

bal·​lot ˈbal-ət 

1

: a small ball or sheet of paper used to cast a secret vote

2

a

: the action or system of voting

b

: the right to vote

3

: the number of votes cast

ballot

2 of 2 verb

: to vote or decide by ballot

Etymology

Noun

from Italian ballotta "little ball (used in voting)," from balla "ball"

Word Origin

Small objects have long been used as a means of tallying votes. In ancient Greece, a word for "pebble," psēphos, came to designate any voting token, and then to mean simply "vote," from the practice of dropping a pebble into one of two urns as decisions were made in public assemblies. In medieval Venice, small balls were used in public lotteries and elections; in one such lottery, members of the city's Great Council would draw gold and silver balls from vases to determine nominating committees for officeholders. The word for "small ball" in the Venetian form of Italian was ballotta, which was extended to other tokens used in drawing lots and voting, such as scraps of linen or paper. Familiarity with Venetian customs led to the adoption of the word as ballot in English.