Loss or lost?
loss is a noun meaning “The result of no longer possessing an object, a function, or a characteristic…”; lost is an adjective meaning “Having wandered from, or unable to find, the way”. Use loss as a noun and lost as an adjective. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) lost is about 2.1 times as common as loss.
What is the difference between loss and lost?
| loss | lost | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, verb | adjective, verb |
| Meaning | The result of no longer possessing an object, a function, or a characteristic due to external causes or misplacement The destruction or ruin of an object | Having wandered from, or unable to find, the way In an unknown location; unable to be found |
| Example | loss of limb; weight loss; loss of cognitive functions; loss of appetite | The children were soon lost in the forest |
| Forms | losses | loster, lostest |
| Pronunciation | /lɒs/ /lɔs/ | /lɒst/ /lɔst/ /lɔsʈ/ |
| In writing | 117 times per million words | 245 times per million words |
Sources: loss and lost in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of loss and lost
loss
- 1
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
- 2
colloquialAlternative spelling of lost
- 3
Alternative form of loess
- 4
The destruction or ruin of an object
- 5
Something that has been destroyed or ruined
It was a terrible crash; both cars were total losses
- 6
Defeat; an instance of being defeated
The match ended in their first loss of the season
- 7
The death of a person or animal
We mourn his loss
- 8
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
lost
- 1
Having wandered from, or unable to find, the way
The children were soon lost in the forest
- 2
In an unknown location; unable to be found
Deep beneath the ocean, the Titanic was lost to the world
- 3
Not perceptible to the senses; no longer visible
an island lost in a fog; a person lost in a crowd
- 4
Parted with; no longer held or possessed
a lost limb; lost honour
- 5
Not employed or enjoyed; thrown away; employed ineffectually; wasted; squandered
a lost day; a lost opportunity or benefit; no time should be lost
- 6
Ruined or destroyed, either physically or morally; past help or hope
a ship lost at sea; a woman lost to virtue; a lost soul
- 7
Hardened beyond sensibility or recovery; alienated; insensible
lost to shame; lost to all sense of honour
- 8
Occupied with, or under the influence of, something, so as not to notice external things
to be lost in thought
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, loss or lost?
loss appears 117 times per million words; lost 245 times per million words.
loss 117 times per million wordslost 245 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search loss vs lost?
“loss vs lost” is searched about 2,900 times a month on Google and 110 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“lost vs loss”, “loss or lost”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.