What’s the difference between loose and lose?

This week we are looking at two words which are sometimes confused: loose and lose.

loose

Loose /luːs/ is an adjective. It means `not firmly fixed’, or `not tight’.

The handle is loose.

Mary wore loose clothes.

lose

Lose /luːz/ is a verb. If you lose something, you cannot find it, or you no longer have it.

If you lose your credit card, let the company know immediately.

I don’t want to lose my job.

The other forms of lose are loses, losing, lost.

They were willing to risk losing their jobs.

He had lost his passport.

Find out more in our English Usage article.

This blogpost is based on Collins COBUILD English Usage, written for learners of English. For more examples of English usage points, please visit:  https://grammar.collinsdictionary.com/english-usage.

All opinions expressed on this blog are those of the individual writers, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of Collins, or its parent company, HarperCollins.

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