n.; pl. Misses [ Contr. fr. mistress. ] 1. A title of courtesy prefixed to the name of a girl or a woman who has not been married. See Mistress, 5. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ There is diversity of usage in the application of this title to two or more persons of the same name. We may write either the Miss Browns or the Misses Brown. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A young unmarried woman or a girl; as, she is a miss of sixteen. [ 1913 Webster ]

Gay vanity, with smiles and kisses,
Was busy 'mongst the maids and misses. Cawthorn. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A kept mistress. See Mistress, 4. [ Obs. ] Evelyn. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Card Playing) In the game of three-card loo, an extra hand, dealt on the table, which may be substituted for the hand dealt to a player. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Missed p. pr. & vb. n. Missing. ] [ AS. missan; akin to D. & G. missen, OHG. missan, Icel. missa, Sw. mista, Dan. miste. √100. See Mis-, pref. ] 1. To fail of hitting, reaching, getting, finding, seeing, hearing, etc.; as, to miss the mark one shoots at; to miss the train by being late; to miss opportunites of getting knowledge; to miss the point or meaning of something said. [ 1913 Webster ]

When a man misses his great end, happiness, he will acknowledge he judged not right. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To omit; to fail to have or to do; to get without; to dispense with; -- now seldom applied to persons. [ 1913 Webster ]

She would never miss, one day,
A walk so fine, a sight so gay. Prior. [ 1913 Webster ]

We cannot miss him; he does make our fire,
Fetch in our wood. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To discover the absence or omission of; to feel the want of; to mourn the loss of; to want; as, to miss an absent loved one. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Neither missed we anything . . . Nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him. 1 Sam. xxv. 15, 21. [ 1913 Webster ]

What by me thou hast lost, thou least shalt miss. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

To miss stays. (Naut.) See under Stay. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To fail to hit; to fly wide; to deviate from the true direction. [ 1913 Webster ]

Men observe when things hit, and not when they miss. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

Flying bullets now,
To execute his rage, appear too slow;
They miss, or sweep but common souls away. Waller. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To fail to obtain, learn, or find; -- with of. [ 1913 Webster ]

Upon the least reflection, we can not miss of them. Atterbury. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To go wrong; to err. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Amongst the angels, a whole legion
Of wicked sprites did fall from happy bliss;
What wonder then if one, of women all, did miss? Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To be absent, deficient, or wanting. [ Obs. ] See Missing, a. [ 1913 Webster ]

What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act of missing; failure to hit, reach, find, obtain, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Loss; want; felt absence. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

There will be no great miss of those which are lost. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Mistake; error; fault. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

He did without any great miss in the hardest points of grammar. Ascham. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Harm from mistake. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n.; pl. Missae [ LL. See 1st Mass. ] (R. C. Ch.) The service or sacrifice of the Mass. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL. missale, liber missalis, from missa mass: cf. F. missel. See 1st Mass. ] The book containing the service of the Mass for the entire year; a Mass book. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to the Mass, or to a missal or Mass book. Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To speak ill. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To say wrongly. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To speak evil of; to slander. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To seek for wrongly. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]