Edit page | Page history | Printable version

Lose

1. To part with unintentionally or unwillingly, as by accident, misfortune, negligence, penalty, forfeit, etc.; to be deprived of; as, to lose money from one's purse or pocket, or in business or gaming; to lose an arm or a leg by amputation; to lose men in battle. Fair venus wept the sad disaster Of having lost her favorite dove. (Prior)

2. To cease to have; to possess no longer; to suffer diminution of; as, to lose one's relish for anything; to lose one's health. If the salt hath lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted ? (Matt. V. 13)

3. Not to employ; to employ ineffectually; to throw away; to waste; to squander; as, to lose a day; to lose the benefits of instruction. The unhappy have but hours, and these they lose. (Dryden)

4. To wander from; to miss, so as not to be able to and; to go astray from; as, to lose one's way. He hath lost his fellows. (Shak)

5. To ruin; to destroy; as destroy; as, the ship was lost on the ledge. The woman that deliberates is lost. (Addison)

6. To be deprived of the view of; to cease to see or know the whereabouts of; as, he lost his companion in the crowd. Like following life thro' creatures you dissect, You lose it in the moment you detect. (Pope).

7. To fail to obtain or enjoy; to fail to gain or win; hence, to fail to catch with the mind or senses; to miss; as, i lost a part of what he said. He shall in no wise lose his reward. (Matt. X. 42) I fought the battle bravely which i lost, And lost it but to Macedonians. (Dryden)

8. To cause to part with; to deprive of. How should you go about to lose him a wife he loves with so much passion ? (Sir W. Temple)

9. To prevent from gaining or obtaining. O false heart ! thou hadst almost betrayed me to eternal flames, and lost me this glory. (Baxter) to lose ground, to fall behind; to suffer gradual loss or disadvantage. To lose heart, to lose courage; to become timid. The mutineers lost heart. . To lose one's head, to be thrown off one's balance; to lose the use of one's good sense or judgment. In the excitement of such a discovery, many scholars lost their heads. (Whitney) to lose one's self. To forget or mistake the bearing of surrounding objects; as, to lose one's self in a great city. To have the perceptive and rational power temporarily suspended; as, we lose ourselves in sleep. To lose sight of. To cease to see; as, to lose sight of the land. To overlook; to forget; to fail to perceive; as, he lost sight of the issue.

Origin: oe. Losien to loose, be lost, lose, as. Losian to become loose; akin to oe. Leosen to lose, p. P. Loren, lorn, as. Leosan, p. P. Loren (in comp), D. Verliezen, g. Verlieren, dan. Forlise, Sw. Forlisa, forlora, goth. Fraliusan, also to E. Loose, a & v, L. Luere to loose, gr, Skr. L to cut. Cf. Analysis, palsy, Solve, forlorn, Leasing, loose, Loss.