Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To be unsuccessful in retaining possession of; mislay.
- intransitive verb To be deprived of (something one has had).
- intransitive verb To be left alone or desolate because of the death of.
- intransitive verb To be unable to keep alive.
- intransitive verb To be unable to keep control or allegiance of.
- intransitive verb To fail to win; fail in.
- intransitive verb To fail to use or take advantage of.
- intransitive verb To fail to hear, see, or understand.
- intransitive verb To let (oneself) become unable to find the way.
- intransitive verb To remove (oneself), as from everyday reality into a fantasy world.
- intransitive verb To rid oneself of.
- intransitive verb To consume aimlessly; waste.
- intransitive verb To wander from or become ignorant of.
- intransitive verb To elude or outdistance.
- intransitive verb To be outdistanced by.
- intransitive verb To become slow by (a specified amount of time). Used of a timepiece.
- intransitive verb To cause or result in the loss of.
- intransitive verb To cause to be destroyed. Usually used in the passive.
- intransitive verb To cause to be damned.
- intransitive verb To suffer loss.
- intransitive verb To be defeated.
- intransitive verb To operate or run slow. Used of a timepiece.
- idiom (lose it) To become very angry or emotionally upset.
- idiom (lose it) To become deranged or mentally disturbed.
- idiom (lose it) To become less capable or proficient; decline.
- idiom (lose out on) To miss (an opportunity, for example).
- idiom (lose time) To operate too slowly. Used of a timepiece.
- idiom (lose time) To delay advancement.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The act of losing; loss.
- To praise.
- A Middle English form of
loose . - To miss from present possession or knowledge; part with or be parted from by misadventure; fail to keep, as something that one owns, or is in charge of or concerned for, or would keep.
- To be dispossessed, deprived, or bereaved of; be prevented or debarred from keeping, holding, or retaining; be parted from without wish or consent: as, to
lose money by speculation; to lose blood by a wound; to lose one's hair by sickness; to lose a friend by death. - To cease to have; part with through change of condition or relations; be rid of or disengaged from.
- To fail to preserve or maintain: as, to
lose one's reputation or reason; to lose credit. - To fail to gain or win; fail to grasp or secure; miss; let slip: as, to
lose an opportunity; to lose a prize, a game, or a battle. - To let slip or escape from observation, perception, etc.: as, I lost what he was saying, from inattention; we lost the ship in the fog.
- To fail to profit by; miss the use, advantage, or enjoyment of; waste.
- To cause to miss or be deprived of; subject to the loss of: as, his slowness lost him the chance.
- To displace, dislodge, or expel.
- To give over to ruin, disgrace, or shame: chiefly in the past participle.
- To be bewildered; have the thoughts or reason hopelessly perplexed or confused.
- To become abstracted or fall into a reverie; become absorbed in thought; lose consciousness, as in slumber.
- To suffer loss or deprivation.
- To incur forfeit in a contest; fail to win.
- To succumb; fail; suffer by comparison.
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word lose.
Examples
-
The one sure way to lose is to pick Hillary for VP.
-
If you play it over and over, without a break between repetitions, you’ll probably find that it becomes weird to you—the same way saying “purple” over and over makes the word lose its meaning.
Where To Park Your Broomstick Lauren Manoy 2002
-
If you play it over and over, without a break between repetitions, you’ll probably find that it becomes weird to you—the same way saying “purple” over and over makes the word lose its meaning.
Where To Park Your Broomstick Lauren Manoy 2002
-
This is what we call a lose / lose situation, because the cops will either have no sense of humor and arrest you for public intoxication, or they will try to fuck with you and snicker amongst themselves while telling you to give it your best shot.
Pointlessbanter.net 2009
-
All we have to lose is our self-concept of an egalitarian society ...
Cheers for a Two-Tier Society, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 2009
-
Rae thinking what Jack stands to lose is his team ... in some fashion ... maybe they will lose him.
TORCHWOOD: CoE Part 3...Spoilers rabid1st 2009
-
If he went the way of the Republicans, we would once again lose stature in the world and Iran would be able to put the blame on the US for the riots.
-
The only thing you might have to lose is your clothing.
Meredith Fineman: Fifty First (J)Dates: 5 Reasons Why Everyone Should Try Online Dating. Meredith Fineman 2010
-
The only people who stand to lose from a universal health plan are the bloodsuckers who are making billions by keeping you and the doctor apart.
Republicans raising cash to counter-program ABC Obama special 2009
-
THE BAD NEWS: The one senior that Utah State does lose is a key one -- point guard Jared Quayle, a first-team All-WAC selection who did everything well.
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.