Word definition: lose

Etimology


From Middle English losen, from Old English losian, from Proto-Germanic *lusōną, *luzōną, from Proto-Germanic *lusą. The modern pronunciation with /uː/ is due to conflation with loose.

verb


lose (third-person singular simple present loses, present participle losing, simple past and past participle lost)

(transitive) To cause (something) to cease to be in one's possession or capability.

To wander from; to miss, so as not to be able to find; to go astray from.

(transitive) To fail to win (a game, competition, trial, etc).

(transitive) To be unable to follow or trace (somebody or something) any longer.

(transitive) To cause (somebody) to be unable to follow or trace one any longer.

(transitive) To cease exhibiting; to overcome (a behavior or emotion).

(transitive, informal) To shed, remove, discard, or eliminate.

Of a clock, to run slower than expected.

(ditransitive) To cause (someone) the loss of something; to deprive of.

To fail to catch with the mind or senses; to miss.

Examples


Meanwhile Nanny Broome was recovering from her initial panic and seemed anxious to make up for any kudos she might have lost, by exerting her personality to the utmost. She took the policeman's helmet and placed it on a chair, and unfolded his tunic to shake it and fold it up again for him.

Douglas: I took some of the pension money out of the bank and I lost it on a horse.Nolan: Gambling with our employees' pensions?Douglas: Gambling? No. I was riding the horse. It fell out of my pocket.

Forest, who lost striker Kris Boyd to injury seconds before half-time, produced little after the break, with a Tyson sliced shot from 12 yards their only opportunity of note.

If you lose that ten-pound note, you'll be sorry.

He lost his hearing in the explosion.

She lost her position when the company was taken over.

Johnny lost a tooth, but kept it for the tooth fairy.

He lost his spleen in a car wreck.

I’ve lost five pounds this week.

She lost all her sons in the war.

I hold it true, whate’er befall;⁠I feel it, when I sorrow most;⁠’Tis better to have loved and lostThan never to have loved at all.

Frank had lost $500 staying in Vegas.

Users who engage in disruptive behavior may lose their accounts.

I lost my way in the forest.

He hath lost his fellows.

We lost the football match.

You just lost The Game.

I fought the battle bravely which I lost, / And lost it but to Macedonians.

Well, some news from overseas: according to a new report, Russia is now buying military supplies from North Korea. Yep, Russia's asking North Korea for help. Uh, tell us you're losing the war without telling us you're losing the war.

The policeman lost the robber he was chasing.

Mission control lost the satellite as its signal died down.

We managed to lose our pursuers in the forest.

I can see Mickie getting hot, I'm about to grab his arm, hold him back, say, Whoa, whoa, Mick, not here, it ain't worth it what happened inside just now. But I don't need to because Mickie loses his anger, starts smiling at ponytail, then melodramatically starts looking around at the men and women on the street going in and out of the courthouse.

Her attitude was so bad my mother wound up telling her, “You know we really don't have to be standing here talking to you, so you can lose the attitude or you can leave.

When we get into the building, please lose the hat.

You can bet that the next woman who "loses" the top half of her bikini at the beach was born under the sign of Libra.

My watch loses five minutes a week.

It's already 5:30? My watch must have lost a few minutes.

O false heart! thou hadst almost betrayed me to eternal flames, and lost me this glory.

How should you go about to lose him a wife he loves with so much passion?

This lost Catholicism […] any semblance of a claim to special status, and also highlighted the gains which other religious formations had derived from the Revolution.

I lost a part of what he said.

Related words


synonyms

(cause to cease to be in one's possession): leave behind, mislay

(fail to win (something): forfeit

(shed (weight): drop, shed

(have (somebody of one's kin) die):

(be unable to follow or trace (somebody or something) any longer):

(shed, remove, discard, eliminate): ditch, drop, dump, get rid of, jettison

antonyms

(cause to cease to be in one's possession): come across, discover, find, gain, acquire, procure, get, pick up, snag

(fail to win (something): win

(shed (weight): gain, put on

(have (somebody of one's kin) die):

(be unable to follow or trace (somebody or something) any longer): find

(shed, remove, discard, eliminate): pick up

(fail to be the winner): come first, win

related terms

losel

loser

loss

Etimology


From Old French los, loos, from Latin laudēs, plural of laus (“praise”).

noun


lose

(obsolete) Fame, renown; praise.

Examples


That much he feared least reprochfull blame / With foule dishonour him mote blot therefore; / Besides the losse of so much loos and fame […].

Data provided by Wiktionary