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lost

lost

4 2.0
Unable to act because you have no help or guidance
  • adjective
  • /lɔst/
translation icon : desamparado
  • In the midst of the crowd, she felt completely lost and overwhelmed by the noise.
  • feel lost
  • look lost
  • very lost

And, you know, we're lost as to what to do with our time.

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Examples

  • Something has happened to me and I'm very lost.

  • You looked so lost and lonely.

  • I feel so lost and sad right now.

    Blog text (5)
  • You remind me of myself when I was young, lost, vulnerable.

  • These people are lost in pain and don't know where to turn.

  • People like me feel little, lost, ugly, and dispensable.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • I'm so lost and forsaken

  • She had looked so lost and beautiful that he'd wanted to take her in his arms.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • I was as glum and lost as Christine and Thomas must've been.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Moore Street has always welcomed the needy, the lonely, the lost of this city's people, and did so with an open heart.

Synonyms

helpless
vslost
243 2.0

Not able to act or protect yourself

also implies lack of guidance or hope, not only inability
hopeless
vslost
133 2.7

With no chance of success or getting better

focuses more on inability to function and lack of guidance
adrift
vslost
23 5.6

Not having a clear direction or purpose

adds the idea of inability to function and lack of hope or support
high and dry
vslost
  • Informal
15 6.3

Someone has no help or basic things in a difficult situation

emphasizes lack of support but also lack of hope or normal functioning
in the lurch
vslost
  • Informal
8 8.2

Left without help at an important time

covers general inability and missing guidance beyond single abandonment
at loose ends
vslost
  • Informal
2 7.2

Feeling unsure what to do and not busy

implies inability to function and missing guidance rather than mere idleness
left in limbo
vslost
1 7.8

A situation with no decision or guidance that leaves people unsure

highlights lack of support and also inability to function, not only uncertainty

Antonyms

guided
  • Specialized
1 4.0

A device or vehicle controlled to follow a set path and reach a target

2.0

Given money or help by others

Idioms

42 7.4

Not understood or appreciated by someone

Thinking so much that you do not notice what is around you

5 7.5

Missed when people are busy or things are disorganized

no love lost
  • Informal
3 8.3

A strong dislike between two people or groups

Hard to notice among many people or things

To look pleased but not fully happy after a small gain that follows a disappointment

lost and at sea
  • Informal
7.8

Not sure what to do or where to go

lost in action
  • Specialized
7.9

Missing during a battle with nobody knowing what happened to them

lost in Timbuktu
  • Informal
9.9

Hard to find because it is in a faraway or unknown place

Compounds

39 4.9

Something that has no chance of success

A place in a public area where lost items are kept for people to get back

lost wages
  • Specialized
6 4.8

Money a person does not earn because they cannot work

A chance to succeed that you missed

Valuable things like money or jewels that were hidden long ago

A record showing how many games a team or player wins and loses in a season

1 5.5

A failed attempt to beat an illness or other serious problem

Ten tribes of ancient Israel taken away long ago whose fate remains unknown

How Lost

desperate
704 3.3
lost
4 2.0
helpless
243 2.0
uncertain
43 3.9

Surface Forms

lost positive

Etymology

Lost comes from the old English verb lēosan, the root of our word lose, which meant 'to be without' or 'gone'. That's why if someone feels lost they are without guidance or support and cannot act normally.