loss
English · Thesaurus
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Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
loss¹
- /lɒs/ Canada, Northern England, UK
- /lɔs/ Australia, British, Scotland
- /lɔs/ US
- /lɑs/ US, cot caught merger
- /lɒs/ New Zealand
- [lɔ̟s] ~ [lɞ̠s] New Zealand
Rhymes with -ɒs, -ɔːs
Where it comes from
From Middle English los, from Old English los (“damage, destruction, loss”), from Proto-West Germanic *los, from Proto-Germanic *lusą (“dissolution, break-up, loss”), from Proto-Indo-European *lews- (“to cut, sunder, separate, loose, lose”).
Cognate with Icelandic los (“dissolution, looseness, break-up”), Old English lor, forlor (“loss, ruin”), Middle High German verlor (“loss, ruin”). More at lose.
noun losses
- The result of no longer possessing an object, a function, or a characteristic due to external causes or misplacement. loss of limb; weight loss; loss of cognitive functions; loss of appetite.
- The destruction or ruin of an object.
- Something that has been destroyed or ruined. It was a terrible crash; both cars were total losses.
- Defeat; an instance of being defeated. The match ended in their first loss of the season.
- The death of a person or animal. We mourn his loss.
- The condition of grief caused by losing someone or something, especially someone who has died. Her daughter's sense of loss eventually led to depression.
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The sum an entity loses on balance.
The sum of expenditures and taxes minus total income is a loss, when this difference is positive.
Opposite: profit
- Electricity of kinetic power expended without doing useful work. The inefficiency of many old-fashioned power plants exceeds 60% loss before the subsequent losses during transport over the grid.
Similar: deperdition, forlesing, loss · Opposite: acquisition, win
loss²
Where it comes from
Pronunciation spelling of lost, representing African-American Vernacular English.
verb
- Alternative spelling of lost
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: expiration, deprivation, departure, release, exit, passing, going, personnel casualty, degradation, deterioration, degeneration, wastage, breakdown, downfall, dead, ruin
noun
Similar: deperdition, forlesing, loss · Opposite: acquisition, win
Translations
Every language
noun the result of no longer possessing something
| Español | pérdida |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 손실 sonsil |
| 日本語 | 損失 sonshitsu |
| 中文 | 損失 /损失 sǔnshī |
| हिन्दी | हानि hāni |
| Português | perda |
| Français | perte |
| Deutsch | Verlust |
| Italiano | perdita |
| Română | pierdere |
| Русский | поте́ря potérja, уте́ря utérja, утра́та utráta, пропа́жа propáža |
| Tiếng Việt | sự mất |
| العربية | خَسَارَة ḵasāra, فِقْدَان fiqdān |
| עברית | אבדה avedá |
noun destruction or ruin of an object
| हिन्दी | क्षति kṣati |
|---|---|
| Русский | поте́ря potérja, утра́та utráta, уще́рб uščérb |
| العربية | ضَرَر ḍarar |
noun defeat — see also defeat
| Español | derrota |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 짐 jim, 패배 paebae |
| 日本語 | 負け make, 敗北 haiboku |
| हिन्दी | हार hār, पराजय parājay |
| Français | défaite |
| Deutsch | Niederlage |
| Русский | про́игрыш próigryš, пораже́ние poražénije |
noun the death of a person or animal
| 한국어 | 손실 sonsil |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 損失 sonjitsu |
| 中文 | 損失 /损失 sǔnshī |
| हिन्दी | हानि hāni, क्षति kṣati |
| Français | perte |
| Deutsch | Verlust |
| Italiano | morte |
| Русский | поте́ря potérja, утра́та utráta |
| العربية | خَسَارَة ḵasāra |
noun grief caused by losing someone or something
| Kiswahili | hasara |
|---|---|
| Português | pesar |
| Français | perte |
| Deutsch | Verlust |
| Italiano | lutto |
| Русский | утра́та utráta |
Talk about this word "loss." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/loss. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. loss. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/loss "loss." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/loss.Cite this
@misc{loss_2026,
title = {loss},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/loss},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
