das Los
lot
The fate or life situation assigned to someone, which they must accept.
EXAMPLE
Sie hat ihr Los akzeptiert und versucht, das Beste daraus zu machen.
She has accepted her lot and is trying to make the best of it.
das Los
lot / lottery ticket
das Los, die Lose
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Meanings
das Los
lottery ticket
A slip of paper or card with a number or symbol that entitles someone to participate in a lottery or raffle.
EXAMPLE
Er kaufte ein Los und gewann eine Reise.
He bought a lottery ticket and won a trip.
das Los
lot
A slip of paper or small object that someone draws to decide by chance who gets something or has to do something.
EXAMPLE
Am Ende entschied das Los, wer den Vortrag halten musste.
In the end, the lot decided who had to give the presentation.
Forms
Forms adapted from the German Wiktionary entry Los, by Wiktionary contributors, licence CC BY-SA 4.0.
At a glance
| gender | neuter das |
|---|---|
| plural | die Lose |
| genitive | des Loses |
The four cases
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | das Los | die Lose |
| accusative | das Los | die Lose |
| dative | dem Los | den Losen |
| genitive | des Loses | der Lose |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
Usage tips
Context clue
With 'das Los' (lot / ticket), the surrounding words show which meaning is intended: 'Schicksal' (fate) often appears with verbs such as 'akzeptieren' (to accept) or 'tragen' (to bear), a lottery with 'kaufen' (to buy) or 'gewinnen' (to win), and a random decision with 'ziehen' (to draw) or 'entscheiden' (to decide).
EXAMPLE
Sie wollte ihr Los nicht länger beklagen.
She no longer wanted to lament her lot.
Vor der Ziehung kaufte er noch ein Los.
He bought another lottery ticket before the draw.
Wir zogen Lose, um die Reihenfolge festzulegen.
We drew lots to determine the order.
Fixed collocations
In the meaning of 'Schicksal' (fate), 'Los' often appears in fixed phrases such as 'sein Los akzeptieren' (to accept one's lot), 'sein Los tragen' (to bear one's lot), or 'sein Los beklagen' (to lament one's lot).
EXAMPLE
Trotz aller Schwierigkeiten lernte sie, ihr Los zu tragen.
Despite all the difficulties, she learned to bear her lot.
Lottery expressions
In the context of a lottery or raffle, common expressions include 'ein Los kaufen' (to buy a lottery ticket), 'ein Los ziehen' (to draw a lottery ticket), and 'ein Gewinnlos haben' (to have a winning ticket).
EXAMPLE
Für die Tombola hat jeder Gast ein Los gekauft.
Every guest bought a lottery ticket for the raffle.
Fixed expressions
In this meaning, 'Lose ziehen' (to draw lots), 'das Los entscheidet' (the lot decides), and 'etwas durch das Los bestimmen' (to decide something by lot) are fixed expressions. 'Das Los fällt auf jemanden' (the lot falls to someone) indicates who is selected by the random decision.
EXAMPLE
Das Los fiel auf meinen Bruder, also musste er den Abwasch machen.
The lot fell to my brother, so he had to do the washing-up.
In real life
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