Lose vs. lost, what’s the past tense of “lose”?
The verb lose means “to be deprived of or cease to have or retain something.” It’s an irregular verb, which means its past tense forms don’t follow the standard rule of adding “-ed”. The correct simple past tense and past participle of lose is lost.
Sentence examples: Lose, loses, losing, lost
| Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Past simple | He lost the staring contest.
My favourite team lost to some amateurs. I lost myself in the soft music. |
| Past Participle | No one was at the party because they had all gotten lost.
He couldn’t stand thinking about all he had lost. |
Phrases with lose
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| to lose your marbles | To lose your mind or act crazily. |
| lose your patience | To become irritated or annoyed. |
| nothing to lose sleep over | Not worth worrying about. |
| lose train of thought | To forget what you were thinking. |
| win some, lose some | Accepting both success and failure. |
| you snooze, you lose | If you wait, you might miss out. |
Origin of the word/verb lose
Old English losian “be lost, perish,” from los “destruction, loss”. The Germanic word is from PIE *leus-, an extended form of root *leu- “to loosen, divide, cut apart.
Practice: ‘Lose’ conjugations
She ______ her keys somewhere between the car and the front door.
He had ______ all hope until he saw the rescue boat.
He always ______ his patience when he has to wait in a long line.
The team is ______ the game by a wide margin.
Try not to ______ your focus during the final part of the exam.
FAQs
What’s the past tense of ‘lose’?
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Is ‘lose’ a regular verb?
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Is ‘losed’ a correct form of ‘lose’?
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How is past participle ‘lost’ used?
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How is simple past ‘lost’ used?
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Sources
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“Lose, V. (1).” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, June 2025, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1273677318.
Yash, D. "How to Use Lose vs. Lost (Exaplained, With Examples)." Grammarflex, Sep 13, 2025, https://grammarflex.com/lose-vs-lost/.
