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失去

shī qù
verb★Intermediate💡 lose
formal

To no longer possess or have something; to fail to keep or maintain.

她失去了信心,决定放弃。

She lost confidence and decided to give up.

这场比赛他们失去了最后的机会。

They lost their last chance in the game.

💡

Commonly used in contexts involving loss of tangible or intangible things (e.g., jobs, relationships, opportunities).

literary

To die or perish.

他失去了战友,心中充满悲痛。

He lost his comrade and was filled with grief.

💡

Used in poetic or elevated language to describe death.

Collocations

失去信心lose confidence失去联系lose contact失去机会lose an opportunity失去耐心lose patience

Synonyms

丧失丢失遗失

Antonyms

获得得到拥有

Related Phrases

失之交臂idiom
to miss an opportunity by a narrow margin

💡Pro Tip

Distinguish from '丢失'

'失去' focuses on the emotional or psychological consequence of loss (e.g., '失去希望' / lose hope), while '丢失' refers to physical loss (e.g., '丢失钥匙' / lose keys).

⚡Gold Rule

Use with abstract nouns

Prefer '失去' for abstract losses like '信心' (confidence), '机会' (opportunity), or '自由' (freedom). For physical objects, use '丢失' or '遗失'.

📖Word Origin

The character '失' (shī) originally depicted a hand dropping an object, suggesting 'to lose' or 'to drop'. '去' (qù) means 'to go' or 'to leave'. Combined, '失去' metaphorically implies something slipping away or departing from possession.

📝Usage Notes

Unlike '丢失' (to lose something physically), '失去' emphasizes the emotional or psychological impact of loss, often referring to intangible things like hope, trust, or opportunity.

Word Breakdown

失
to lose, to drop
root
+
去
to go, to leave
root
汉英词典

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