What does sortilege mean?
Sortilege is a formal name for the practice of using lots, such as marked stones, sticks, or written slips, to divine the future or determine an auspicious choice. Its use can suggest ancient religious practice, oracle-based decision-making, or a more general attempt to interpret signs and omens. Although it is related broadly to divination and augury, sortilege specifically emphasizes the casting or drawing of lots. The word appears mainly in historical, literary, and specialized writing, and it is not a common everyday term in either British or American English. Its distinctive history makes it useful when describing methods of ancient decision-making, the mechanics of an oracle, or a practice based on interpreting apparently random selections. In modern contexts, the term may also carry an antique or elevated tone, so writers often prefer divination when no more specific meaning is intended.
nounThe practice of divination, especially by casting lots or drawing lots to determine a course of action or foresee an outcome. The word is chiefly used in historical, literary, and specialized contexts.
- The practice of divination by casting or drawing lots, especially to determine an auspicious course of action or foresee an outcome.
- A particular act or method of divination based on lots.
"The priest relied on sortilege to choose the festival's auspicious date."
"The oracle's sortilege suggested that the expedition should wait until dawn."
"In medieval accounts of sortilege, a written number or a marked object was used to reveal the will of the gods."
The plural sortileges is grammatically standard but rarely encountered because the noun itself is uncommon.
"The manuscript describes several forms of sortileges used to select auspicious dates."
Sortilege turns the randomness of casting lots into a formal attempt to read the future: ancient divination practiced with stones, sticks, and other objects.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does sortilege come from?
The word comes from Latin sortilēgium, meaning divination by lots, which was derived from sortilēgus, a term for a diviner who cast lots. The Latin formation ultimately combines the idea of casting or drawing lots with a reference to gathering or selecting, reflecting the practice of interpreting a chosen lot. Latin sortilēgium passed into English through learned usage, and the modern form preserves its specialized sense of divination by lots.
Related word forms
How sortilege is actually used
Sortilege is a literary, historical, or scholarly term rather than ordinary modern vocabulary. It refers more specifically to divination through lots than do the broader terms divination or augury.