loss Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun something that is lost
    • the car was a total loss
    • loss of livestock left the rancher bankrupt
  2. noun gradual decline in amount or activity
    • weight loss
    • a serious loss of business
  3. noun the act of losing someone or something
    • everyone expected him to win so his loss was a shock
  4. noun the disadvantage that results from losing something
    deprivation.
    • his loss of credibility led to his resignation
    • losing him is no great deprivation
  5. noun the experience of losing a loved one
    • he sympathized on the loss of their grandfather
  6. noun the amount by which the cost of a business exceeds its revenue
    red ink; red.
    • the company operated at a loss last year
    • the company operated in the red last year
  7. noun military personnel lost by death or capture
    personnel casualty.
  8. noun euphemistic expressions for death
    departure; going; exit; expiration; release; passing.
    • thousands mourned his passing

WordNet

Loss noun
Etymology
AS. los loss, losing, fr. leósan to lose. . See Lose, v. t.
Definitions
  1. The act of losing; failure; destruction; privation; as, the loss of property; loss of money by gaming; loss of health or reputation.
    Assured loss before the match be played. Shak.
  2. The state of losing or having lost; the privation, defect, misfortune, harm, etc., which ensues from losing.
    Though thou repent, yet I have still the loss. Shak
  3. That which is lost or from which one has parted; waste; -- opposed to gain or increase; as, the loss of liquor by leakage was considerable.
  4. The state of being lost or destroyed; especially, the wreck or foundering of a ship or other vessel.
  5. Failure to gain or win; as, loss of a race or battle.
  6. Failure to use advantageously; as, loss of time.
  7. (Mil.) Killed, wounded, and captured persons, or captured property.
  8. (Insurance) Destruction or diminution of value, if brought about in a manner provided for in the insurance contract (as destruction by fire or wreck, damage by water or smoke), or the death or injury of an insured person; also, the sum paid or payable therefor; as, the losses of the company this year amount to a million of dollars. Syn. -- Privation; detriment; injury; damage.

Webster 1913