to come to be without (something in one's possession or care), through accident, theft, etc., so that there is little or no prospect of recovery

I'm sure I've merely misplaced my hat, not lost it.

to fail inadvertently to retain (something) in such a way that it cannot be immediately recovered

I just lost a dime under this sofa.

to suffer the deprivation of

to lose one's job; to lose one's life.

to be bereaved of by death

to lose a sister.

to fail to keep, preserve, or maintain

to lose one's balance; to lose one's figure.

(of a clock or watch) to run slower by

The watch loses three minutes a day.

to give up; forfeit the possession of

to lose a fortune at the gaming table.

to get rid of

to lose one's fear of the dark; to lose weight.

to bring to destruction or ruin (usually used passively)

Ship and crew were lost.

to condemn to hell; damn.

to have slip from sight, hearing, attention, etc.

to lose him in the crowd.

to stray from or become ignorant of (one's way, directions, etc.)

to lose one's bearings.

to leave far behind in a pursuit, race, etc.; outstrip

She managed to lose the other runners on the final lap of the race.

to use to no purpose; waste

to lose time in waiting.

to fail to have, get, catch, etc.; miss

to lose a bargain.

to fail to win (a prize, stake, etc.)

to lose a bet.

to be defeated in (a game, lawsuit, battle, etc.)

He has lost very few cases in his career as a lawyer.

to cause the loss of

The delay lost the battle for them.

to let (oneself) go astray, miss the way, etc.

We lost ourselves in the woods.

to allow (oneself) to become absorbed or engrossed in something and oblivious to all else

I had lost myself in thought.

(of a physician) to fail to preserve the life of (a patient).

(of a woman) to fail to be delivered of (a live baby) because of miscarriage, complications in childbirth, etc.

to suffer loss

to lose on a contract.

to suffer defeat or fail to win, as in a contest, race, or game

We played well, but we lost.

to depreciate in effectiveness or in some other essential quality

a classic that loses in translation.

(of a clock, watch, etc.) to run slow. ?

lose out, to suffer defeat or loss; fail to obtain something desired

He got through the preliminaries, but lost out in the finals.

lose face. face ( def. 48 ) .

verb

hold on to , keep , maintain , achieve , succeed , win , confront , face , meet

verb

be careless , become poorer , be impoverished , bereave , be reduced , capitulate , consume , default , deplete , disinherit , displace , dispossess , dissipate , divest , drain , drop , exhaust , expend , fail , fail to keep , fall short , forfeit , forget , give up , lavish , misplace , miss , misspend , oust , pass up , relinquish , rob , sacrifice , squander , suffer , suffer loss , surrender , use up , waste , yieldnotes:loose means not restrained , fastened , confined or attached , while lose means fail to keep or to maintain or fail to win , be humbled , be outdistanced , be sunk , be taken to cleaners , be the loser , be worsted , come up short , decline , drop a bundle , fall , kiss goodbye , lose out , succumb , suffer defeat , take a beating , take the count , take the heat , clear , dodge , duck , elude , evade , give the slip , leave behind , outrun , rid , shake , shake off * , slip away , stray , throw off * , unburden , wander fromnotes:loose means not restrained , mislay , shake off , slip , throw off , defeat , wander