Irregular English verb, past tense of Lose: Lose - Lost - Lost

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What is the past tense of Lose? Are the present, past, and past participle forms of Lose the same? Let's explore the concept, usage, and conjugation exercises of Lose with PREP below!

I. What is Lose?
II. What are V0, V2, V3 of Lose? The past tense of Lose in English
III. How to Conjugate the Verb Lose
1. 1. In tenses
2. 2. In special sentence structures
IV. Phrasal verbs/idioms with Lose in English
V. Exercises on applying Lose past form with answers
1. 1. Exercise: Conjugate the verb Lose in the appropriate tense
2. 2. Answer key

I. What is Lose?

Before delving into the past tense of Lose, let's explore the definition of Lose with PREP!

Lose is pronounced /luːz/, functions as a verb, and has multiple meanings:

Meaning	Example
To no longer have something in your possession; to cease to have or own	I often lose my keys.
To be defeated in a competition or contest; to fail to win	They lost the match by two goals.
To miss an opportunity or fail to benefit from something; to be at a disadvantage in a situation	He lost his chance to get the job.
To decrease in amount, size, or condition; to become less in weight, quality, or importance	She’s trying to lose weight by exercising more.

II. What are V0, V2, V3 of Lose? The past tense of Lose in English

What is Lose past tense? V0, V2, V3 are abbreviations for: Base form, Simple past, and Past participle. Let's take a closer look at V0, V2, V3 of Lose in the table below!

Verb form		Example
V0	Lose(s) /luːz/	Jennie often loses her home key.
V2	Lost /lɑːst/	Jennie lost her home key yesterday.
V3	Lost /lɑːst/	Jennie has lost her home key since she went to Paris 5 days ago.

Lose past tense and past participle are: Lose in past simple is Lost and Lose past participle is Lost.

III. How to Conjugate the Verb Lose

How is the verb Lose conjugated in the 12 tenses of English and special structures? Let's explore this below with PREP!

1. In tenses

12 tenses in English	I	He/She/It	We/You/They
Present simple tense	lose	loses	lose
	I lose my keys frequently. She loses her patience easily. We lose focus when we’re tired.
Present progressive tense	am losing	is losing	are losing
	I am losing weight by exercising every day. She is losing hope after so many failures. We are losing our chance to win this game.
Present perfect tense	have lost	have lost	have lost
	I have lost my wallet again. She has lost her phone three times this month. We have lost the match.
Present perfect progressive tense	have been losing	have been losing	have been losing
	I have been losing weight for three months. She has been losing her temper more often lately. We have been losing focus because of the noise.
Past simple tense	lost	lost	lost
	I lost my keys yesterday. She lost her favorite book last week. We lost the game by one point.
Past progressive tense	was losing	was losing	was losing
	I was losing hope when they called with good news. She was losing patience while waiting for the results. We were losing the race until the last lap.
Past perfect tense	had lost	had lost	had lost
	I had lost my way before I found the correct path. She had lost her confidence before the interview started. We had lost the keys before we left the house.
Past perfect progressive tense	had been losing	had been losing	had been losing
	I had been losing money for months before I realized the mistake. She had been losing sleep because of stress. We had been losing so many customers until we improved our service.
Future simple tense	will lose	will lose	will lose
	I will lose my mind if this keeps happening. She will lose her job if she doesn’t improve her efficiency. We will lose the competition if we don’t work harder.
Future progressive tense	will be losing	will be losing	will be losing
	I will be losing weight after starting my new workout plan. She will be losing time if she keeps procrastinating. We will be losing customers if we don’t fix the problem.
Future perfect tense	will have lost	will have lost	will have lost
	I will have lost ten pounds by the end of this month. She will have lost all her savings by the end of this month if she keeps spending like this. We will have lost the match by the time you arrive.
Future perfect progressive tense	will have been losing	will have been losing	will have been losing
	I will have been losing weight for six months by December. She will have been losing sleep over this project for weeks. We will have been losing money for 3 months by the end of the quarter.

2. In special sentence structures

Special Structure	I	He/She/It	We/You/They
Conditional Sentences
Second conditional - Main Clause	would lose	would lose	would lose
Second conditional - Main Clause	If I lost my job, I would lose my sense of security. If she lost her phone, she would lose all her important contacts. If we lost the competition, we would be very disappointed.
Third conditional - Main Clause	had lost	had lost	had lost
Third conditional - Main Clause	If I had lost the keys yesterday, I would have been locked out of the house. If she had lost her job last year, she would have had to find a new one. If we had lost the match, we would have missed the championship.
Subjunctive Mood
Subjunctive expressing present situation	lose	lose	lose
Subjunctive expressing present situation contrary to fact	lost	lost	lost
Subjunctive expressing past situation contrary to fact	had lost	had lost	had lost
Example	I suggest that you should lose weight to become healthier. If she lost her phone, she would lose all her important contacts. If we had lost the game, we would have missed the final round.

IV. Phrasal verbs/idioms with Lose in English

Keep handy the list of phrasal verbs with Lose in English below!

Phrasal verb/ Idioms with Lose	Meaning	Example
lose out (on sth)	To miss an opportunity to gain something; to suffer a loss because of not taking advantage of a situation	If you don’t apply for the job now, you might lose out on a great opportunity.
lose count of something	To have so many of something that it becomes impossible to keep track or count them	I lost count of how many times I’ve told you to clean your room.
lose face	To suffer a loss of respect or reputation; to experience embarrassment or humiliation in front of others	John lost face after the presentation went poorly.
lose your head	To become very agitated or confused; to lose your composure or self-control	Don’t lose your head during the meeting; stay calm and focused.
lose heart	To become discouraged or to lose motivation; to give up hope	Even though the project is difficult, don’t lose heart.
lose your mind	To become extremely upset or anxious; to go crazy	Linda might lose her mind if she keeps working those long hours.
lose sight of	To no longer be able to see something; to become unaware of something	Anna lost sight of the car in the heavy traffic.

Phrasal verbs/idioms with Lose in English

V. Exercises on applying Lose past form with answers

To better understand the past tense of Lose in English, let's complete the exercises below with PREP!

1. Exercise: Conjugate the verb Lose in the appropriate tense

Xavia usually ___ (lose) her keys.
I ___ (lose) my patience with this ongoing issue.
They ___ (lose) several clients this year.
We ___ (lose) sleep over this project for weeks.
Peter ___ (lose) his wallet last weekend.
Maria ___ (lose) her way when it started to rain.
By the time we arrived, we ___ (lose) the match.
I ___ (lose) interest in the course before it ended.
If you don’t pay attention, you ___ (lose) your chance.
We ___ (lose) money if the project fails.
By the end of the day, I ___ (lose) my patience.
By next month, Anna ___ (lose) several hours of work due to system outages.

2. Answer key

loses
am losing
have lost
have been losing
lost
was losing

had lost
had been losing
will lose
will be losing
will have lost
will have been losing

In this article, PREP has answered the question "What is the past tense of Lose?" and provided additional information about the concept, phrasal verbs, and idioms with Lose. Be sure to follow PREP regularly for more valuable English knowledge!

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