Webster's English Dictionary

Enter the word to look up:

loss

loss \'lo.s\ n [ME los, prob. back-formation fr. lost, pp. of losen to 
   lose] 1a: the act of losing  1b: the harm or privation resulting from loss 
   or separation  1c: an instance of losing  2: a person or thing or an amount 
   that is lost : as  pl  2a: killed, wounded, or captured soldiers  2b: the 
   power diminution of a circuit element corresponding to conversion o f 
   electric power into heat by resistance 3: failure to gain, win, obtain, or 
   utilize; specif : an amount by  which the cost of an article or service 
   exceeds the selling price 4: decrease in amount, magnitude, or degree  5: 
   DESTRUCTION, RUIN  6: the amount of an insured's financial detriment by 
   death or damage that t he insurer becomes liable for : PUZZLED, UNCERTAIN  
   : into a state of distress  - at a loss