Etymologically
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loser

Etymology and origin of the English word loser

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
before 1340
Ultimate origin
English (lose)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈluː.zə/, US /ˈluː.zɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is an agent noun from lose and -er.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A destroyer, a sense now obsolete: before 1340 in the OED, the mid-14th century in Etymonline.[3][2]

Semantic evolution

One who loses or suffers loss is from 1548 in the OED and Merriam-Webster, the 1540s in Etymonline,[3][4][2] and a waster of time from 1650.[3] The good or bad loser, who takes defeat well or badly, is from 1892,[3] and a horse that loses a race from 1902.[3][2] An unsuccessful or incompetent person, a habitual failure, is recorded by 1955, in American student slang.[2][3]

Timeline

  • before 1340 – a destroyer.[3]
  • 1548 – one who suffers loss.[3][4]
  • 1892 – a bad loser.[3]
  • 1902 – a losing horse.[3][2]
  • 1955 – a failure (slang).[2][3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A person or team that loses a contest.
  2. A person who takes defeat in a given way: a bad loser.
  3. (informal) A person who fails consistently; a failure.
  4. (bridge) A card that will not take a trick.

Word family

  • nonloser
  • two-time loser

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
Cite this entry

“Loser.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/loser. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·