lose
( loses 3rd person present) ( losing present participle) ( lost past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you lose a contest, a fight, or an argument, you do not succeed because someone does better than you and defeats you.
A C Milan lost the Italian Cup Final... V n
The government lost the argument over the pace of reform... V n
No one likes to be on the losing side. V-ing
2 verb If you lose something, you do not know where it is, for example because you have forgotten where you put it.
I lost my keys... V n
I had to go back for my checkup; they'd lost my X-rays. V n
3 verb You say that you lose something when you no longer have it because it has been taken away from you or destroyed.
I lost my job when the company moved to another state... V n
She was terrified they'd lose their home. V n
4 verb If someone loses a quality, characteristic, attitude, or belief, they no longer have it.
He lost all sense of reason... V n
He had lost his desire to live. V n
5 verb If you lose an ability, you stop having that ability because of something such as an accident.
They lost their ability to hear... V n
He had lost the use of his legs. V n
6 verb If someone or something loses heat, their temperature becomes lower.
Babies lose heat much faster than adults... V n
7 verb If you lose blood or fluid from your body, it leaves your body so that you have less of it.
During fever a large quantity of fluid is lost in perspiration. V n
8 verb If you lose weight, you become less heavy, and usually look thinner.
I have lost a lot of weight... V n
Martha was able to lose 25 pounds. V n
9 verb If you lose a part of your body, it is cut off in an operation or in an accident.
He lost a foot when he was struck by a train. V n
10 verb If someone loses their life, they die.
...the ferry disaster in 1987, in which 192 people lost their lives... V n
Hundreds of lives were lost in fighting. V n
11 verb If you lose a close relative or friend, they die.
My Grandma lost her brother in the war. V n
12 verb If things are lost, they are destroyed in a disaster.
usu passive
...the famous Nankin pottery that was lost in a shipwreck off the coast of China. be V-ed
13 verb If you lose time, something slows you down so that you do not make as much progress as you hoped.
They claim that police lost valuable time in the early part of the investigation... V n
Six hours were lost in all. V n
14 verb If you lose an opportunity, you do not take advantage of it.
If you don't do it soon you're going to lose the opportunity... V n
They did not lose the opportunity to say what they thought of events. V n to-inf
...a lost opportunity. V-ed
15 verb If you loseyourself in something or if you are lostin it, you give a lot of attention to it and do not think about anything else.
(=absorb)
Michael held on to her arm, losing himself in the music... V pron-refl in n
He was lost in the contemplation of the landscape. be V-ed in n
16 verb If a business loses money, it earns less money than it spends, and is therefore in debt. (BUSINESS)
His shops stand to lose millions of pounds... V n
17 verb If something loses you a contest or loses you something that you had, it causes you to fail or to no longer have what you had.
My own stupidity lost me the match... V n n
His economic mismanagement has lost him the support of the general public. V n n
19 If someone loses it, they become extremely angry or upset.
INFORMAL
♦
lose it phrase V inflects
I completely lost it. I went mad, berserk.
20 If you lose your way, you become lost when you are trying to go somewhere.
♦
lose one's way phrase V inflects
The men lost their way in a sandstorm.
21
→
to lose your balance
→
balance
→
to lose the battle but win the war
→
battle
→
to lose contact
→
contact
→
to lose your cool
→
cool
→
to lose face
→
face
→
to lose your grip
→
grip
→
to lose your head
→
head
→
to lose heart
→
heart
→
to lose your mind
→
mind
→
to lose your nerve
→
nerve
→
to lose the plot
→
plot
→
to lose sight of
→
sight
→
to lose your temper
→
temper
→
to lose touch
→
touch
→
to lose track of
→
track lose out phrasal verb If you lose out, you suffer a loss or disadvantage because you have not succeeded in what you were doing.
(=miss out)
We both lost out... V P
Laura lost out to Tom... V P to n
Women have lost out in this new pay flexibility... V P in n
Egypt has lost out on revenues from the Suez Canal. V P on n