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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Lose: Meanings, Examples, and Usage Tips (3 meaning)

Meaning 1：misplace (lose)

lose 🔊

/luːz/

When you can't find something that you had before.

Person searching for lost key under sofa cushion

misplace 🔊

➕

/mɪsˈpleɪs/

To be unable to find something that you previously owned or had in your possession.

📁 Category：Behaviors & Actions 🔖 Level：beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old English 'losian' meaning 'perish, destroy', related to 'los' (loss). No clear prefix-root-suffix structure.

💡 Mnemonic

Think of a loose shoe—if your shoe is loose, you might lose it while running.

📖 Example

I always lose my house keys in the living room. 🔊 I always misplace my house keys in the living room.

🔗 Collocations

lose track of – to not know where something is or to forget about something

lose sight of – to no longer see someone or something

lose something – to fail to keep something in a known location

🔄 Synonyms

misplace (v.) – to put something in a wrong place and be unable to find it

mislay (v.) – to lose something temporarily by forgetting where you put it

forget (v.) – to not remember where you left something

🚫 Antonyms

find (v.) – to discover something you were looking for

locate (v.) – to find the exact position of something

retrieve (v.) – to get something back from where it was left

🌱 Derivatives

loser (n.) – a person who misplaces things often (informal)

lost (adj.) – unable to be found or missing

📖 Cultural Story

In Old English, 'lose' originally meant 'to perish' or 'destroy'. By the 13th century, it shifted to 'be deprived of' and 'fail to win'. Common in sports, finance, and everyday speech.

Meaning 2：be defeated (lose)

lose 🔊

/luːz/

To not win a game, competition, or argument.

Soccer ball in net with defeated player walking away

be defeated 🔊

➕

/bi dɪˈfiːtɪd/

To not win a game, competition, contest, or argument; to be on the losing side.

📁 Category：Entertainment & Sports 🔖 Level：beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

Our team played well but still lost the basketball game by two points. 🔊 Our team played well but still was defeated in the basketball game by two points.

🔗 Collocations

lose a game – to be defeated in a match or contest

lose an argument – to fail to convince others or to be proven wrong

lose by a narrow margin – to be defeated by only a small difference in score

🔄 Synonyms

be defeated (v.) – to be beaten by an opponent

fail (v.) – to not succeed in achieving a goal

come in second (v.) – to finish behind the winner

🚫 Antonyms

win (v.) – to be victorious in a game or argument

triumph (v.) – to achieve a great victory

prevail (v.) – to prove more powerful than an opponent

🌱 Derivatives

loser (n.) – the person or team that is defeated

losing (adj.) – that results in a loss or defeat

lost (adj.) – having been defeated in a contest

Meaning 3：shed weight (lose)

lose 🔊

/luːz/

To have less of something, especially body weight.

Person smiling on scale showing lower weight

shed weight 🔊

➕

/ʃed weɪt/

To have a reduction in body weight, typically as a result of diet, exercise, or illness.

📁 Category：Diet & Health 🔖 Level：intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

By exercising regularly, she managed to lose five kilograms in two months. 🔊 By exercising regularly, she managed to shed five kilograms in two months.

🔗 Collocations

lose weight – to become lighter in body mass

lose pounds – to reduce body weight by a certain number of pounds

lose belly fat – to reduce fat around the stomach area

🔄 Synonyms

shed (v.) – to get rid of something, especially weight

drop (v.) – to reduce weight quickly

slip off (v.) – to gradually lose weight (informal)

🚫 Antonyms

gain (v.) – to increase in weight

put on (v.) – to add body weight

accumulate (v.) – to gather body fat over time

🌱 Derivatives

weight loss (n.) – the process of losing body weight

loser (n.) – a person who is on a weight loss program (informal)