Spanish word

tómbola

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈtombola/

Meaning

  • feminine nounraffle

Example

En la fiesta hubo una tómbola y gané un premio pequeño.

At the party there was a raffle and I won a small prize.

Illustration for tómbola (raffle)

More examples

Decidimos organizar una tómbola para recaudar fondos.

We decided to organize a raffle to raise funds.

Core concept

Stack of numbered tickets next to a small prize table.

Common phrases

  • participar en la tómbola

    participate in the raffle

  • ganar en la tómbola

    win at the raffle

  • organizar una tómbola

    organize a raffle

Similar words

rifa: Fundraising raffle selling tickets or numbers, winners chosen by a ticket draw.
sorteo: General drawing that randomly selects winners from entries or purchased tickets.
lotería: Large-scale, often public lottery offering substantial cash or big-ticket prizes.

Definition in Spanish

Rifa o sorteo recreativo típico de ferias, colegios o actividades benéficas, en el que se eligen ganadores al azar entre boletos o papeletas.

Word origin

Borrowed from Italian tombola, the term moved from the game to mean a casual raffle held at community events in Spanish.

Usage tips

  • The written accent marks stress on the first syllable, so tómbola is pronounced TOM-bo-la, and it is distinct from lotería, the national lottery.

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