loss

loss · noun

imported

Definitions

noun

  1. 1.

    The fact or process of losing something or someone.

  2. 2.

    The state of being deprived of something.

  3. 3.

    A defeat in a game or contest.

  4. 4.

    Financial deficit; money lost in business.

  5. 5.

    The death of a person, especially a loved one.

  6. 6.

    A feeling of grief after losing something valuable.

Forms

plural: losses

Phrases & expressions

  • •
    at a loss — Puzzled; uncertain what to do.
  • •
    at a loss for words — Unable to think of what to say.
  • •
    cut one's losses — Abandon an unprofitable situation.
  • •
    a dead loss — A complete failure.
  • •
    profit and loss — Financial gains and deficits.
  • •
    job losses — Reduction in employment.
  • •
    one's loss — Missing out on something good.

Related words

Antonyms: gain, profit, recovery, win
See also: defeat, gain, lose, lost, profit
Synonyms: bereavement, defeat, deficit, deprivation

Etymology

From Old English los ("loss, destruction, ruin"), from Proto-Germanic lusą. Related to Old Norse los ("destruction") and Gothic lus ("dissolution"). Connected to the verb "lose."