loss
noun
Simple meaning
Something you no longer have, or the fact of no longer having it.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
lawsIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈlɔs
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
countable
The death of a person or animal.
The act of losing someone or something
“Everyone expected him to win so his loss was a shock.”
The disadvantage that results from losing something
“His loss of credibility led to his resignation.”
countable
The result of no longer possessing an object, a function, or a characteristic due to external causes or misplacement.
uncountable
The condition of grief caused by losing someone or something, especially someone who has died.
uncountable
The destruction or ruin of an object.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The death of a person or animal.
Used this way, loss is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly unfavourable pull. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Losingnoun
“Everyone expected him to win so his loss was a shock.”
Disadvantagenoun
“His loss of credibility led to his resignation.”
More ways to use loss
- “He sympathized on the loss of their grandfather.”noun
- “The company operated at a loss last year.”noun
- “Everyone expected him to win so his loss was a shock.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Similar Words, What’s the Difference?
Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.
The act of departing from life.
Death, dying; the end of something.
Military personnel lost by death or capture.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Something lost (especially money lost at gambling).
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Characterized by or causing no dissipation of energy.
Characterized by or causing dissipation of energy.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The ratio of the annual claims paid by an insurance company to the premiums received.
A featured article of merchandise sold at a loss in order to draw customers.
The occurrence of a loss of the ability to perceive and respond.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.