Obs. Also 4–5 soort, 5–6 sorte. [a. OF. sort (mod.F. sort, = It. and Pg. sorte, Sp. suerte), or ad. L. sort-, sors lot, share, fortune, condition, etc. Cf. next.]
1. a. With possessive pronoun: The fate or lot of a particular person or persons.
c. 1250. Gen. & Ex., 1186. Abimalech … sente after abraham…, And bi-taȝte him his wif a-non, And his yuel sort was ouergon.
c. 1386. Chaucer, Troylus, 1754. O lord, right now renneth my sort Fully to dye, or han anoon comfort.
1412–20. Lydg., Chron. Troy, V. 2643. Ageyn my sort me list not maligne.
c. 1450. Merlin, ii. 36. Ye thought to sle hym, be the whiche ye sholde be brought to the deth as be youre sorte.
c. 1500. Lancelot, 26. So be such meine fatit was my sort.
b. In more general sense: Destiny, hap, fate, fortune.
c. 1386. Chaucer, Prol., 844. Anon to drawen every wight began,… Were it by aventure, or sort, or cas, The soth is this, the cut fil to the knight.
c. 1450. St. Cuthbert (Surtees), 5915. It fell aftir be happe and sort.
1581. Marbeck, Bk. of Notes, 880. That the sorts & lots which appeare most subject to fortune goe so forth by his providence.
2. = LOT sb. 1.
13[?]. E. E. Allit. P., C. 193. Sone haf þay her sortes sette & serelych deled, & ay þe lote … lymped on Ionas.
1606. Shaks., Tr. & Cr., I. iii. 376. Make a Lott’ry, And by deuice let blockish Aiax draw The sort to fight with Hector.
b. The casting or drawing of lots; divination by this means. Chiefly in phr. by sort, = LOT sb. 1 b.
c. 1386. Chaucer, Pars. T., ¶ 605. What seye we of hem that bilieven on divinailes, as by flight or by nois of briddes…, or by sort, by geomancie [etc.]?
a. 1470. Harding, Chron., LXVII. ii. Engist and Horsus,… By sort sent out all voyde of Saxonye.
1483. Caxton, Cato, F j. Thou oughtest not to enquyre by sorte or wytche crafte of that that god wyl doo.
c. 1500. Melusine, 110. Ne also sort or enchauntment of art Magique … shul not lette ne greve you.
1525. Ld. Berners, Froiss., II. 651. A generall fame … ran vpon her, that all the infyrmiteis the kyng had … came all by hir sortes and artes.
c. The choice resulting from such a casting of lots, = LOT sb. 1 c. rare.
1382. Wyclif, Ezek. xxiv. 6. Woo to the citee of blodis…; soort, or lot, felle not vpon it. Ibid., Luke i. 5. Ther was sum prest, Zacharie by name,… of the sort of Abia.
1563–7. Buchanan, Reform. St. Andros, Wks. (S.T.S.), 10. That God … wald send the sort apon hym that war habliast to exerce that estat to hys glore.
3. That which is allotted or assigned; a share or portion. rare.
1382. Wyclif, Josh. xvii. 18. Thow shalt not haue o soort, but thow shalt passe to the hil. Ibid., Acts viii. 21. Part is not to thee, nethir sort, in this word.
1483. Caxton, Gold. Leg., 284 b/2. The men took wyues of theyr lignage only, that was by cause the distribucion of the sortes shold not be confounded.
