Loss

/lɔːs/ noun

Definition

Loss is the state of no longer having something or someone you once had. It can describe emotional pain when a person dies, or a financial or material decrease.

Etymology

From Old English 'los,' meaning 'destruction' or 'ruin,' related to the verb that became 'lose.' The idea moved from total ruin to any kind of decrease or absence.

Kelly Says

We use 'loss' both for numbers and for feelings: a 'financial loss' and 'a sense of loss.' The same word quietly links your bank account and your heart, showing how the mind treats missing money and missing people as versions of the same experience.

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