Added 3 October 2026
loss
/lɒs/ noun
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about loss at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
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.
verb
- Alternative spelling of lost.
Origin
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.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)