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Loose vs. Lose
Is it not tight or gone?
Loose vs. Lose
| LOOSE |
|---|
The adjective loose is used for something that is (1) not tied or fastened in place; (2) not attached to anything. |
Sophie's tooth is loose. (not securely attached) She is loosening the tooth with her finger. |
Your dog is loose. (free, not tied up) |
The football got loose, so the other team took possession of it. (free from our possession) |
Your clothes are loose. (too large) |
You are too anxious. Hang loose. (expression – relax) |
| LOSE |
|---|
The verb lose is used when we stop having (no longer have) something, or we gradually have less of a particular attitude, quality, ability etc. |
Sophie will lose her tooth in a day or so. (become unattached) |
You might lose your dog if you don't keep him inside. (allow to runaway) |
Our team needs to play better or we will lose the game. (fail to win) |
Have you lost weight. (reduced) |
You will lose your temper if you continue this way. (expression – be unable to control ) |
loosen (V), loosened (past & past participle), loose (Adj)
lose (V), lost (past & past participle)
fastened (Adj) – not well connected or attached
Loose
Adjective
LOOSE — other meanings
| MEANING | SENTENCE |
|---|---|
FREE, ESCAPED, UNATTACHED |
The chickens run loose in the yard. |
NOT TIGHT |
He prefers to wear loose shirts. |
RANDOM ORDER, NOT TIGHTLY PACKED TOGETHER |
Vegetables grow well in loose soil. He carries loose change in his pocket. We make loose leaf tea rather than using tea bags. |
APPROXIMATE, INEXACT, NOT PRECISE |
He has a loose explanation, arrangement, agreement. |
| EXPRESSION | |
ESCAPE, RUN AWAY |
The horse will break loose from its enclosure if it is not closed well. |
RELAX, GET A LITTLE WILD |
He walked onto the dance floor and cut loose. (intentionally lose control) |
HAVE NOTHING TO DO |
He doesn't want to be at loose ends. He doesn't know where to go. |
UNTRUSTWORTHY, UNPREDICTABLE |
He was a loose cannon¹ on the battle field. |
BE RELAXED |
Just go in there and hang loose. (stay calm, do not worry) |
ALLOW EMOTIONS TO ESCAPE |
The wolf let loose a howl. / He picks up a guitar and lets loose. |
HAVE NO CARES OR WORRIES |
He is foot loose and fancy free. |
¹loose cannon (expr.) — someone who cannot be trusted because they say or do things you do not want them to
Loosen
Verb
LOOSEN — other meanings
| MEANING | SENTENCE |
|---|---|
UNTIE |
Can you loosen this knot? |
RELAX |
Loosen up! |
RELAX, RELEASE A LITTLE |
The government loosened its hold on the protesters. |
| EXPRESSION | |
SPEAK MORE EASILY |
A little alcohol loosened his tongue. |
SPEND MORE EASILY |
A better economy will allow people to loosen their wallets. |
STRETCH MORE EASILY |
A few warm-up exercises will loosen your muscles. |
An expression is two or more words that combine to form a new meaning. That is, each word does not keep its literal meaning.
Lose
Verb
LOSE —other meanings
| MEANING | SENTENCE |
|---|---|
NOT WIN |
He lost the election, game, match, competition by a landslide. (a lot) |
MISPLACES |
She loses her keys quite often. And then she finds them again later. |
ALLOW TO ESCAPE |
She will lose her dog if she doesn't close the gate. |
MISS AN OPPORTUNTITY |
We lost a chance to see him before he left. |
DECREASE |
Most people lose weight when they have the flu. (weight, points, money, credit) |
DIE |
He lost his father recently to a heart attack. "I'm sorry for your loss." |
STOP HAVING AN ABILITY |
After he turned ninety, he lost his sight, hearing, voice, balance, sense of smell, etc. |
STOP HAVING AN CONTROL |
After he turned ninety, he lost his temper, his control, his mind, his head, his cool. He lost it. |
STOP HAVING AN EMOTION |
He must not lose his confidence, interest, hope, respect, heart, self-esteem, etc. |
STOP HAVING A SENSE |
While walking in the forest, he lost his sense of direction, sense of time, etc. He lost his way. |
STOP HAVING SOMETHING |
He will lose his license if he is texting while driving. (Br-EN licence) |
STOP HAVING A SPECIAL SKILL |
This food is terrible. The chef has lost his touch. |
STOP HAVING ENOUGH TIME |
He lost time in the race because he had to repair a flat tire. |
GET RID OF |
Lose him. (an unwanted person) Lose that attitude! (unwanted character) |
| EXPRESSION | |
STOP KNOWING THE LOCATION OR WELL-BEING |
We lose track of friends after we move away. We lose touch with friends after we move away. |
HAVE NO RISK, NO CHANCE OF LOSING |
Ask him for a raise. You have nothing to lose. He needs you. |
STOP RECEIVING RESPECT |
They settled the disagreement so that neither person would lose face. |
STOP REASONING CLEARLY |
Think carefully. You don't want to lose sight of the situation. (forget an important fact or goal) |
FAILED TO WIN |
Our team lost to / lost out to a team with an even worse record. (forget an important fact or goal) |
DECREASES SLEEP WELL, INSOMNIA |
He loses sleep because he worries. |
BECOME CRAZY OR CONFUSED |
He's lost it. (It refers to his sanity or peacefully state of mind) |
lose (V) He will probably lose his keys.
lost (N) – The loss of his keys was a problem.
Common Mistakes
Errors and Solutions
Error and Solution
| ERROR |
|---|
Where did you loose your keys? |
Can you loose the ties on my shoes? |
We losed the game with a score of 17 to 12. |
| SOLUTION |
|---|
Where did you lose your keys? |
Can you loosen the ties on my shoes? (verb form) |
We lost the game with a score of 17 to 12. |
Also see:
- Sevastopoulos, J. "Commonly Misspelled Words: Confusing Word Pairs." Keys to Spelling: Sounds and Syllables. Grammar-Quizzes, 1 Aug 2016, www.grammar-quizzes.com/spelling/commispell.pdf .
Practice 1
Loose?
Correct or Incorrect
- Select your response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "Check 1-10" button at the bottom, or click the "Check" button to the left as you go.
Practice 2
Loose or Lose?
Select loose or lose to complete the sentence.
- Select your response from the list.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "Check" or the "Check 11-20" button.