v. i. To suffer loss, disadvantage, or defeat; to be worse off, esp. as the result of any kind of contest. [ 1913 Webster ]

We 'll . . . hear poor rogues
Talk of court news; and we'll talk with them too,
Who loses and who wins; who's in, who's out. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lost pos>p. pr. & vb. n. Losing ] [ OE. losien to loose, be lost, lose, AS. losian to become loose; akin to OE. leosen to lose, p. p. loren, lorn, AS. leísan, p. p. loren (in comp.), D. verliezen, G. verlieren, Dan. forlise, Sw. förlisa, förlora, Goth. fraliusan, also to E. loose, a & v., L. luere to loose, Gr. ly`ein, Skr. lū to cut. √127. Cf. Analysis, Palsy, Solve, Forlorn, Leasing, Loose, Loss. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. To part with unintentionally or unwillingly, as by accident, misfortune, negligence, penalty, forfeit, etc.; to be deprived of; as, to lose money from one's purse or pocket, or in business or gaming; to lose an arm or a leg by amputation; to lose men in battle. [ 1913 Webster ]

Fair Venus wept the sad disaster
Of having lost her favorite dove. Prior. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To cease to have; to possess no longer; to suffer diminution of; as, to lose one's relish for anything; to lose one's health. [ 1913 Webster ]

If the salt hath lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? Matt. v. 13. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Not to employ; to employ ineffectually; to throw away; to waste; to squander; as, to lose a day; to lose the benefits of instruction. [ 1913 Webster ]

The unhappy have but hours, and these they lose. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To wander from; to miss, so as not to be able to and; to go astray from; as, to lose one's way. [ 1913 Webster ]

He hath lost his fellows. Shak [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To ruin; to destroy; as destroy; as, the ship was lost on the ledge. [ 1913 Webster ]

The woman that deliberates is lost. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. To be deprived of the view of; to cease to see or know the whereabouts of; as, he lost his companion in the crowd. [ 1913 Webster ]

Like following life thro' creatures you dissect,
You lose it in the moment you detect. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. To fail to obtain or enjoy; to fail to gain or win; hence, to fail to catch with the mind or senses; to miss; as, I lost a part of what he said. [ 1913 Webster ]

He shall in no wise lose his reward. Matt. x. 42. [ 1913 Webster ]

I fought the battle bravely which I lost,
And lost it but to Macedonians. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. To cause to part with; to deprive of. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

How should you go about to lose him a wife he loves with so much passion? Sir W. Temple. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. To prevent from gaining or obtaining. [ 1913 Webster ]

O false heart! thou hadst almost betrayed me to eternal flames, and lost me this glory. Baxter. [ 1913 Webster ]

To lose ground, to fall behind; to suffer gradual loss or disadvantage. --
To lose heart, to lose courage; to become timid. “The mutineers lost heart.” Macaulay. --
To lose one's head, to be thrown off one's balance; to lose the use of one's good sense or judgment, through fear, anger, or other emotion. [ 1913 Webster ]

In the excitement of such a discovery, many scholars lost their heads. Whitney.

--
To lose one's self. (a) To forget or mistake the bearing of surrounding objects; as, to lose one's self in a great city. (b) To have the perceptive and rational power temporarily suspended; as, we lose ourselves in sleep. --
To lose sight of. (a) To cease to see; as, to lose sight of the land. (b) To overlook; to forget; to fail to perceive; as, he lost sight of the issue. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ From the root of lose, loss. √127. Cf. Lorel. ] One who loses by sloth or neglect; a worthless person; a lorel. [ Archaic ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

One sad losel soils a name for aye. Byron. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Wasteful; slothful. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. losengier, losengeor, fr. losengier to deceive, flatter, losenge, flattery, Pr. lauzenga, fr. L. laus praise. Cf. Lozenge. ] A flatterer; a deceiver; a cozener. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

To a fair pair of gallows, there to end their lives with shame, as a number of such other losengers had done. Holinshed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. ] Flattery; deceit; trickery. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who loses; as, the loser pays for a round of beer. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A person who is habitually unsuccessful at some endeavor, such as employment or personal relationships. [ slang ] [ PJC ]

3. A plan or strategy unlikely to succeed. [ slang ] [ PJC ]